
Class _A5,5,crie^ 
Boole - vl/^ r /^ 



Ci)BflRIGHT DEPOS; 



A TEXT BOOK 



NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

INCLUDING 

THE REVISED EDUCATION LAW, THE DECISIONS OF COURTS AND THE 

RULINGS AND DECISIONS OF STATE SUPERINTENDENTS 

AND THE COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION 

PREPARED FOR THE USE OF TOWN, CITY AND UNION FREE-SCHOOL DISTRICT OFFICERS, 
NORMAL SCHOOLS, TRAINING CLASSES, TEACHERS 



THOMAS E. FINEGAN, A. M., Pd. D., LL. D. 

n 

ATTORNEY AND COUNSELLOR-AT-LAW 
DEPUTY COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK 



ELEVENTH EDITION 

REVISED TO JANUARY I, I918 




ALBANY, N. Y. 

MATTHEW BENDER & COMPANY, 

INCORPORATED 
I917 



Copyright, 1962, 
By THOMAS E. FINEGAN 

Copyright, 1907, 1908, 1910, 1913, 1914, 1915, 
By MATTHEW BENDER & COMPANY 



Copyright, 1915, 1916, 1917, 

By MATTHEW BENDER & COMPANY 

incorporated 



OCT 20 1917 

©Ci,A47665i 



PUBLISHER'S ANNOUNCEMENT TO THE 
ELEVENTH EDITION. 



The Eleventh Edition of this work has been completely rewritten 
and revised to January i, 1918. It includes a complete interpreta- 
tion of all educational statutes enacted by the Legislature of 1917. 
Among these are the Township law, the City School law, the City 
School Election law, the law authorizing the emplo3nnent of agri- 
culture directors, the law requiring special instruction for the men- 
tally defective and physically defective children, the amendments 
of the Compulsory Attendance law, the Census law, and other 
amendments of the Education law ; the provisions of the Physical 
Training law, the Military Training law, National Vocational law 
and other important statutes are also included. 

iii 



"tj' 



PREFACE TO ELEVENTH EDITION. 



The First Edition of this work was edited in 1902. The legiti- 
mate field of the work of the public school has greatly expanded 
since the First Edition of this work was prepared. New community- 
interests have placed larger demands upon the public school system 
and upon local school officers and teachers who administer and 
operate such system. The statutes regulating the schools have been 
amended in accordance with the development of the work of the 
school system. 

The aim of the author in the preparation of the Eleventh Edition 
of this work has been to express the meaning of the laws regulating 
the operation and administration of the public school system in the 
simplest manner possible. Having labored in the field of public 
education in the State for thirty years and in various fields of the 
public school system, he has an interest in school work which gives 
him an eahiest desire to make this volume of the greatest possible 
service to the teachers and school officers of the State. 

T. E. F. 

Albany, N. Y., October i, 1917. 



CONTENTS. 



PAGE 

CHAPTER I 
University of the State of New York j_g 

CHAPTER II 
State Education Department 10-16 

CHAPTER III 
President of the University and Commissioner of Education 17-22 

CHAPTER IV 
Rural School Supervision 23-39 

CHAPTER V 
Duties of Supervisors, Town Clerks, County Treasurers, District 

Attorneys, and County Judges in relation to school matters... 40-46 

CHAPTER VI 
School Districts 47-58 

CHAPTER VII 
District Meetings 59-63 

CHAPTER VIII 
Voters at Town-school and Union Free-school District Meet- 
ings — Qualifications, Challenges, etc 64-67 

CHAPTER IX 
Sites, School Buildings, Bonds, etc 68-87 

CHAPTER X 
Township System 88-92 

CHAPTER XI 
Town Boards of Education, Clerk, Treasurer 93-99 

CHAPTER XII 

Town School Meetings '. 100-107 

vii 



Vlll CONTENTS 

PAGE 

CHAPTER XIII 
Union Free-school District Officers 108-117 

CHAPTER XIV 
Board of Education — Union Free-school District — Powers and 
Duties 118-128 

CHAPTER XV 
Town School Budget — Town School Taxes 129-135 

CHAPTER XVI 
Assessment and Collection of Taxes in Union Free-school Dis- 
tricts 136-149 

CHAPTER XVII 
State School Moneys 150-162 

CHAPTER XVIII 
Courses of Study — Subjects Included — Physiology and Hy- 
giene, Humane Treatment of Animals and Birds 163-168 

CHAPTER XIX 
Industrial Education 169-175 

CHAPTER XX 
Textbooks, Arbor Day, Flag Law and Savings Banks 176-182 

CHAPTER XXI 
Compulsory Education 183-198 

CHAPTER XXII 
School Census 199-202 

CHAPTER XXIII 
Medical Inspection, Vaccination, Physical Training, Military 
Training 203-212 

CHAPTER XXIV 
Contracts for Education of Children, Transfer of Children, 
Transportation of Children, Free Tuition, Academic Instruc- 
tion 213-221 

CHAPTER XXV 
Special Classes for Mentally Retarded — Physically Defective — 
Orphan Schools — State Schools for Deaf and Dumb and for 
the Blind 222-229 



CONTENTS ix 

PAGE 

CHAPTER XXVI 
School and Public Libraries 230-232 

CHAPTER XXVn 
State Scholarships 233-238 

CHAPTER XXVIII 
State Normal Institutions 239-246 

CHAPTER XXIX 
Teachers* Training Classes, Training Schools 247-251 

CHAPTER XXX 
Teachers' Qualifications, Certificates, Contracts, Powers and 
Duties 252-277 

CHAPTER XXXI 
Retirement of Teachers 278-283 

CHAPTER XXXII 
City School Systems 284-314 

CHAPTER XXXIII 
City School Elections 315-322 

CHAPTER XXXIV 
Appeals to the Commissioner of Education 323-328 



NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 



CHAPTER I 

UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK 

^ [Article 3] 

The first educational institution created by the State was the 

" Regents of the University of the State of New York ", which 
was established by the Legislature in 1784. This institution was 
therefore established within a few months after the treaty of peace 
between Great Britain and the United States had been signed. 
This institution is one of the most unique of the educational insti- 
tutions in the country. The history of its growth and development 
is one of unusual interest and is based upon the growth and develop- 
ment of the nation itself. It was the intention of the State in 
founding this institution to make it the directing and controlling 
power in the building and development of the State's educational 
system. The great purpose of the leaders of public affairs in the 
State in founding this institution was not attained^ however, until 
after the institution had been in existence for nearly one hundred 
and thirty years. The name of this corporation was changed by 
the legislature in 1889 to " University of the State of New York ", 
and the University was placed upon a permanent foundation when 
the people of the State, by popular vote, adopted the State constitu- 
tion of 1894. This constitutional provision, the powers of the 
Regents under the provisions of the unification act of 1904 and the 
general powers conferred upon that body in the education law 
enabled the Board of Regents to make the University of the State 
of New York the administrative body which should exercise the 
powers of the Education Department. Under ordinances adopted 
by the Board of Regents on July 2nd, 1913, the University of the 
State of New York thus became the controlling body in the admin- 



2 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

istration of all the educational affairs of the State and then became 
what its founders intended it should be when the State established 
it in 1784. 

The provision of the constitution is as follows : 

Article IX 

Regents of the University. — § 2. The corporation created in the 
fear one thousand seven hundred and eighty-four, under the name 
of The Regents of the University of the State of New York, is 
hereby continued under the name of The University of the State 
of New York. It shall be governed and its corporate powers, 
which may be increased, modified or diminished by the Legislature, 
shall be exercised by not less than nine regents. 

Controlling Body. — The Regents are the controlfing or govern- 
ing body of the University. 

Chief Functions. — The chief powers of the University are to 
administer the functions of the Education Department and to 
charter and inspect educational institutions, confer degrees, deter- 
mine value of credentials, the value of institutions not in the 
University according to its standards, prescribe examinations for 
its secondary institutions which shall be a suitable standard of 
graduation therefrom and of admission to college, and to supervise 
entrance requirements to the learned professions, and the licensing 
to practice such professions, etc. 

Chancellor and Vice-Chancellor. — The chancellor is the pre- 
siding officer of all meetings of the Regents and of the convocation. 
He confers degrees authorized by the Regents, and fixes the time 
and place of all special meetings of the Regents. 

When the chancellor is unable to perform any or all of his duties, 
they are performed by the vice-chancellor. 

Charter Educational Institutions. — The Board of Regents has 
authority to incorporate any university, college, academy, library, 
museum, or other institution or association for the promotion of 
science, literature, art, history, or other department of knowledge 
under such terms as the law provides. 

The Regents may also, in their discretion, issue provisional 
charters, they may change the name of institutions which have been 
chartered, and they may, for valid reasons, suspend or revoke any 
charter which has been granted. 



UNIVEI^glTY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK 3 

They may also amend the charter of any institution under their 
supervision. 

No institution of higher education may be incorporated by the 
Regents until such institution has been inspected by some officer 
of the University and approved by the Regents. The buildings, 
furniture and equipment must meet the Regents' requirements. 

Degree-Conferring Institutions. — No individual, association, 
corporation, or institution can legally confer degrees in thi's State 
unless express provision granting this power is given by a charter 
granted either by the State Legislature or by the Regents. No 
institution or association can transact business under, or assume 
in any way, the name of university or college without permission 
from the Regents. 

No institution can be authorized under the University law to 
confer degrees unless it has resources of at least $500,000. 

Crimes Under University Law. — Counterfeiting any credential 
issued under the seal of the University or making any unauthorized 
alteration in such credential is a felony. 

Any one personating another by attempting to take an exam- 
ination in his name, or procuring a person thus falsely to personate 
another, or attempting in any way to obtain a record of having 
passed a Regents' examination in violation of the University regu- 
lations, is guilty of a misdemeanor. A person who aids or abets 
another in such violation is likewise guilty of the same crime. A 
person who has in his possession previous to an examination the 
question papers to be used in such examination when not contained 
in their sealed wrappers or who sells or offers to sell a Regents' 
question paper in advance of an examination is guilty of a misde- 
meanor. A person who fraudulently issues a Regents' credential, 
or who falsely represents himself as having received a degree or 
credential, or who appends without proper authorization to his 
name the letters representing any degree conferred by the Univer- 
sity, is also guilty of a misdemeanor. 

University Credentials of High School Grade. — These creden- 
tials are the qualifying certificates, and the diplomas. Eight years 
of preacademic preparation or its equivalent is the prerequisite to 
the preliminary professional and all equivalent certificates. The 
qualifying certificates are the law student, medical student, dental 
student, optometry student, veterinary student, pharmacy student, 
and nurse student and the qualifying certificates for admission to 



4 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

the examinations for certified public accountants and certified 
shorthand reporters and architects. 

Preliminary Certificates. — A preliminary certificate is issued to 
any person who passes Regents' examinations in writing, reading, 
spelling, elementary English, arithmetic, geography .and elementary 
United States history with civics. 

Count. — The term "count" represents one year's work of one 
hour per week on one subject. A subject pursued five periods per 
week for one year represents five counts. 

^Academic Diploma. — This diploma is issued on the completion 
of a four-year high school course, for which seventy-six academic 
counts will be required, of which sixteen must be in English, eight 
in history and at least ten each in science and mathematics. The 
minimum passing mark for this diploma is sixty per cent for 
students pursuing regular courses in approved schools. 

* Academic Diploma in Classical Subjects. — This diploma, which 
indicates the completion of a four-year high school course, shall 
be issued to pupils in recognized high schools who earn "/G academic 
counts as follows: Enghsh, i6 counts; Latin, 20 counts; a second 
foreign language three years, 15 counts; history, 5 counts; science, 

5 counts; mathematics, 10 counts; electives, 4 counts. 
"^Academic Diploma in Commercial Subjects. — This diploma, 

which represents the completion of a four-year high school course, 
shall be issued to pupils in recognized high schools who earn 76 
academic counts, who meet the regular requirements for the aca- 
demic diploma, as follows: Enghsh, 16 counts; science, 5 counts; 
mathematics, 10 counts; history, 8 counts; and who pass the fol- 
lowing commercial subjects, with a mark of 75 per cent or above: 
advanced bookkeeping and office practice, commercial arithmetic, 
commercial law, commercial geography, commercial English and 
correspondence, and business writing. 

In computing the counts for the academic diploma in commercial 
subjects, commercial English and correspondence may be counted 
as English; commercial arithmetic and advanced bookkeeping and 
office practice may be counted as mathematics ; history of commerce 
may be counted as history. 



*The full requirement of 76 counts including 16 in English will not go 
into effect until the June 1921 examination. The count requirement will be 
advanced one count each year until 1921, e. g., classes which graduate in 
June 1918 must have 73 counts including 14 in English. 



UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK 5 

^Academic Diploma in Vocational Subjects. — This diploma, 
which indicates the completion of a four-year high school course, 
shall be issued to pupils in recognized high schools who earn 76 
academic counts, who meet the regular requirements for the aca- 
demic diploma, as follows : English, 16 counts ; science, 10 counts ; 
mathematics, 10 counts ; history, 8 counts ; and obtain at least 25 
counts for the successful completion of approved courses in voca- 
tional subjects. In computing the counts for the academic diploma 
in vocational subjects, agricultural biology, agricultural physics, 
agricultural chemistry, household physics and household chemistry 
may be applied toward the science requirement. 

College Entrance Diplomas and Certificates. — College entrance 
diplomas, which are issued in arts, in science or in engineering, and 
whose requirements are substantially the same as the entrance 
requirements of the colleges of the State, are designed to guide 
preparation for and to facilitate admission to college and to consti- 
tute, in part, the basis for awarding the University scholarships, 
and will be given only to pupils of the registered secondary schools 
in this State who make written application for such diplomas by 
the fifteenth of the month of July next succeeding the completion, 
within six years from their enrolment which may be at the begin- 
ning of any half year, of at least four full school years of time, or 
of a longer period if the pupils choose, of approved study in such 
schools, who have earned in Regents examinations, with passing 
marks averaging at least 75 per cent, the respectively prescribed 
counts. But such pupils who have earned the required counts for 
college entrance diplomas, of either class, with minimum passing 
marks of 85 per cent, and have otherwise qualified therefor, may, 
upon their principal's certification of exceptional training and 
ability, receive such diplomas after three and one-half years of such 
study. The specific requirements in Regents' counts may be ascer- 
tained by communicating with the President of the University at 
Albany, N. Y. 

* Music Diploma. — This diploma, which indicates the completion 
of a four-year high school course, shall be issued to pupils who earn 
y6 academic counts, as follows: Musical instruction (4 years), 20 
counts; music practice (credit, if course is approved, allowed on 
certificate of principal. Two hours practice a week for a school 



* See foot note p. 4. 



O NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

year entitles to i count), %S counts; English (4 years), 16 counts; 
a foreign language (2 years), 10 counts; hi^lory (two three-hour 
courses), 6 counts; electives, 5 counts. 

Counts for music practice shall be given only to pupils of accred- 
ited academic schools after the course has in each case been approved 
by the Department. A course in music practice will not be 
approved unless it extends over at least three years of the course 
and not more than 6 counts will be allowed for music practice 
during any one year. No credit will be allowed for music practice 
for any particular pupil until the examination in chorus singing 
and rudiments of music has been passed. 

A pupil who obtains the specified counts for an academic diploma 
may offer music for not more than 24 of the remaining 31 counts. 

Advanced Diploma. — This diploma provides for all academic 
courses longer than the regular course covered by the academic 
diploma above. It is issued only to those who have earned the 
regular academic diploma and eighteen, thirty-six or fifty-four, etc., 
counts in addition. On its face are specified the total counts, its 
name being determined by the highest multiple of eighteen. 

The above diplomas will be issued on the following basis : 

1. A diploma based upon a minimum passing mark of sixty per 
cent in each subject except that in the case of the academic diploma 
in commercial subjects a standing of seventy-five per cent must be 
obtained in certain subjects. 

2. A diploma, with credit, to be issued to students who attain a 
standing of seventy-five per cent or more in subjects aggregating 
forty academic counts. Advanced diplomas will be issued in like 
manner if five-ninths of the counts required are secured with the 
same minimum per cents. 

3. A diploma, with honor, to be issued to students who attain a 
standing of ninety per cent or more in subjects aggregating forty 
academic counts. 

Commercial Credentials. — State Commercial Certificate. — This 
credential shall be granted to those who pass the Regents examina- 
tions (at not less than 75 per cent) in the following subjects based 
on the 1910 syllabus : advanced bookkeeping and office practice, 
commercial arithmetic, commercial law, commercial English and 
correspondence, and business writing, provided the time requirement 
in each subject has been substantially met either in a high school or 
registered commercial school. 



UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK 7 

State Shorthcmd Certificate. — This credential will be granted to 
those who pass the Regents examinations (at not less than 75 per 
cent) in the following subjects based on the 1910 syllabus: short- 
hand 2, typewriting, business writing, and commercial English and 
correspondence, provided the time requirement in each subject has 
been substantially met either in a high school or registered commer- 
cial school. 

Qualifying Certificates are certificates giving evidence that the 
holder has such academic education as is required by law or Regents 
ordinances for admission to the study of the various professions 
and for admission to certain professional and technical schools and 
to the examination for certified public accountants and certified 
shorthand reporters. These certificates are issued only for the 
purposes specified. 

A dental student certificate, a law student certificate, a veterinary 
student certificate or a qualifying certificate for admission to the 
certified public accountant or certified shorthand reporter examina- 
tion may be secured in any one of the following ways: 

1. By furnishing evidence of unconditional admission to and the 
completion of the freshman year in a registered course of any 
college. 

2. By furnishing evidence of the satisfactory completion of a 
four-year course in an approved high school (evidence of such 
work should be submitted on blanks furnished by the Department). 

3. By passing the Regents examinations required for an academic 
diploma or college entrance diploma. 

4. By passing within six successive years special Regents exam- 
inations aggregating 72 counts at a minimum of 75 per cent in the 
following subjects: 

a Required, 53 counts : 

English three years, 10 counts; English fourth year, 3 counts; 
any second year foreign language, 10 counts ; elementary algebra, 
5 counts ; plane geometry, 5 counts ; two of the three sciences, 
physics, chemistry, biology, 10 counts ; American history with civics, 
5 counts ; ancient history or the history of Great Britain and 
Ireland, 5 counts. 

h Electives, 19 counts : 

An additional second year of a foreign language, namely, Latin 
second year, Greek second year, French second year, German second 
year, Spanish second year, Italian second year, or Hebrew second 



8 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

year, lo counts; physics, 5 counts; chemistry, 5 counts; biology, 
5 counts ; physical geography, 5 counts ; intermediate algebra, 2 
counts ; advanced algebra, 3 counts ; solid geometry, 2 counts ; plane 
trigonometry, 2 counts ; ancient history, 5 counts ; history of Great 
Britain and Ireland, 5 counts; modern history I, 3 counts; modern 
history II, 3 counts; economics, 2 counts; commercial arithmetic, 
2 counts ; elementary bookkeeping and business practice, 3 counts ; 
advanced bookkeeping and office practice, 5 counts; shorthand 100 
word test, 10 counts ; drawing, 6 counts. 

The President of the University may, under extraordinary con- 
ditions, in his discretion, waive the time limit within which the 
certificate may be earned. 

5. By evidence of one or more years of high school work (each 
year of such work being equivalent to 18 counts) supplemented by 
special Regents examinations at 75 per cent in each subject sufficient 
to make a total of ^2 counts. Candidates for qualifying certificates 
by this method are to be advised upon presenting evidence of high 
school work in what subjects it shall be necessary for them to take 
examinations to complete the requirements. 

c A dental student certificate may be secured after January i, 

1917, in any one of the five ways specified in section 364-a, except 
that evidence must be submitted showing the satisfactory comple- 
tion of a one-year course in an approved school in each of the 
following sciences : physics, chemistry, and biology, or, in lieu 
thereof, the passing of each of these sciences at 75 per cent or above 
in Regents examinations. 

d A medical student certificate may be secured after January i, 

1918, by presenting evidence of the completion of not less than 
two years of instruction in a college of liberal arts and science after 
the completion of an approved four-year high school course based 
on eight years of elementary preparation. This two-year college 
course must include a year's three-hour course in English, biology, 
physics, chemistry and one of the following: German, French, 
Spanish, Italian. 

e Prior to January i, 1921, a medical student certificate for 
admission to a school of osteopathy may be secured in any of the 
five ways specified in section 364-a, with the exception that evidence 
must be submitted showing the satisfactory completion of a one- 
year course in an approved school in the following sciences : 
physics, chemistry, biology, or, in lieu thereof, the passing of each 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 9 

of these three subjects at 75 per cent or above in Regents exam- 
inations. 

/ A chiropody student certificate may be secured by completing 
one year (after September i, 1917, two years; September i, 1919, 
three years; September i, 1921, four years) of high school work; 
or by earning 18, 36, 54 and ']2 counts, respectively, in Regents 
examinations at 75 per cent or above. 

g An optometry student certificate may be secured in one of the 
following ways: 

1. On evidence of the satisfactory completion of two years of 
approved high school work. 

2. By passing at 75 per cent or above in each subject Regents 
examinations aggregating 36 counts. 

h A nurse student certificate may be secured in one of the follow- 
ing ways : 

1. On evidence of the satisfactory completion of one year of 
approved high school work or the equivalent. 

2. By passing at 75 per cent or above in each subject Regents 
examinations aggregating 18 counts. 

i A pharmacy student certificate may be secured by earning 
fifteen counts (after January i, 1918, 30 academic counts) in 
Regents examinations at 75 per cent or above in each subject; or 
by presenting evidence of study deemed by the Regents to be the 
equivalent. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

What was the first educational institution created by the State? When 
■was it created? Trace its development historically. What change was made 
in the organization in 1889? In 1894? In 1904? In 1913? 

What are the chief powers of the University? What officers has it? 
What are their duties? What is the authority of the University in relation 
to institutions which have been chartered? What .steps are necessary before 
an institution may be chartered? What ftistitution may confer degrees? 
What prohibition is made by law in relation to institutions using the name 
college or university? Before an institution can be authorized under the 
University law to confer degrees what must its resources be? What act 
under the University law is a felony? What acts are misdemeanors? 

Name the credentials issued by the University. What is a pass card? 
What is meant by the term count? What is a preliminary certificate? An 
academic diploma? What must candidates do to obtain a medical-student, 
dental-student, or veternary-student certificate? A law-student certificate? 
Other certificates? 



CHAPTER II 

STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT 
[Article 2] 

Historical Sketch. — The Department of the State Government 
which is charged with the supervision of all public education is 
now called the University of the State of New York. It is located 
in the State Education Building at ^Ibany. This institution was 
established by act of the Legislature in 1784, and since that date 
there has been a department or departments of the State Govern- 
ment under different names which have been charged with the 
function of administering the educational interests of the State. 
The Unification Act of 1904 created the Education Department. 
By Regents' ordinance adopted in 191 3, power was conferred upon 
the University of the State of New York to administer the powers 
and functions of the Education Department. The University of 
the State of New York is, therefore, charged with the general 
management and supervision of all public schools and educational 
institutions and of all g'eneral educational work of the State. 

Maintenance of Schools — Constitutional Provision. — The 
Constitution contains but one provision in relation to the main- 
tenance of a public school system. This provision is a clear, simple 
mandate which requires the Legislature to provide for the main- 
tenance and support of a system of free common schools wherein 
all the children of the State may be educated. The language of 
the Constitution is as follows: 

Article IX ' 

Common Schools. — Section i . The Legislature shall provide 
for the maintenance and support of a system of free common 
schools, wherein all the children of this State may be educated. 

The University has been organized and its work classified as 
follows : 

10 



STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT II 

BOARD OF REGENTS 

General Powers. — The Board of Regents has, subject to 
the laws of the State, legislative control over the Education Depart- 
ment and State educational policies and such board also exercises 
all the powers of the University of the State of New York. It 
approves all appointments made by the Commissioner of Education, 
and fills any vacancy that may exist in the office of Commissioner 
of Education. 

It gives direction to the work related to admission to the learned 
professions, to the management of the State library and the scien- 
tific work of the State, and to other educational work sustained by 
the State outside of teaching institutions. 

Number. — The law provides that there shall always be t"hree 
more regents than there are judicial districts in the State. As there 
are nine judicial districts at present, there must be twelve regents. 

^Election. — One regent is chosen on joint ballot of the 
assembly and the senate during the second week in February each 
year. 

Term. — As one regent is chosen each year and as the number 
of regents is twelve, the term of a regent is twelve years. 

Vacancies — How Filled. — If a vacancy on the Board of 
Regents occurs in a judicial district which should still have a 
representative on the Board of Regents ,and there shall be at the 
time of such vacancy a district not represented on such board, such 
vacancy must be filled by the election of a regent residing in such 
unrepresented district. 

If a vacancy in the office of regent occurs for other cause than 
expiration of term of office, such vacancy shall be filled for the 
unexpired term by the legislature if it is in session, and if it is not 
in session such vacancy shall be filled at the session of the legis- 
lature immediately following. 

President of University and Commissioner of Education. — 
The President of University and Commissioner of Education has 
executive direction over the affairs of the Education Department 
and is the general advisory and supervisory officer of the entire 
State educational system. Chapter III of this work is devoted 
exclusively to his election, powers, duties, etc. 

Deputy and Assistant Commissioners of Education. — There 
are three assistant commissioners of education. These assistant 



12 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

commissioners exercise the functions of the Commissioner of Edu- 
cation in their respective fields, under his general direction. The 
Commissioner of Education has designated the assistant commis- 
sioner for elementary education as Deputy Commissioner of Educa- 
tion. These officers are officially designated as follows: Deputy 
Commissioner and Assistant Commissioner for Elementary Educa- 
tion, Assistant Commissioner for Secondary Education, or Director, 
and Assistant Commissioner and Director for Professional Educa- 
tion. 

Chiefs of Divisions. — The Regents on the recommendation of 
the Commissioner of Education classifies the administrative and 
clerical work of the Department into divisions. The Commissioner 
of Education on approval of the Regents appoints a chief or director 
in charge of each division. Chiefs or directors of divisions are 
directly responsible to the Commissioner of Education. There are 
twelve of these divisions. - 

Director of State Library. — This Division has charge of the 
State Library and, the library school. The State Library was 
established in 1818. It was' placed under the trusteeship of the 
various State officials. In 1844 it was placed under the custody of 
the Regents of the University, and in 1899 was made a part of the 
University. 

Director of State Museum. — The v^^ork of this division em- 
braces investigations in natural science, the economic and industrial 
applications of such science, and the State Museum, It also 
embraces the work of the State geologist and paleontologist, the 
State botanist, State entomologist, mineralogist, zoologist and 
archeologist. 

Director of Agricultural and Industrial Education. — This divi- 
sion has general charge of all branches of industrial education, 
including trade schools, industrial schools, courses in home-making 
and in agriculture. 

Division of History and Public Records. — The office of the 
State Historian is a part of the Education Department and the 
duties formerly devolving on that officer are now performed through 
this Division. The division created by the Legislature of 191 1 and 
known as the " Public Records Division " was abolished by the 
Legislature of 191 5 and the functions of that division were merged 
with the Division of History. 



STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT 1 3 

Director of Examinations and Inspections. — This division has 
charge of all examinations conducted by the Education Department 
and also has supervision of the inspection of the educational insti- 
tutions of the State. The work of the Examinations Division and 
the Inspections Division was coordinated by action of the Board of 
Regents in April, 191 5. 

The propriety of holding Regents examinations was first sug- 
gested in 1828. It was not, however, until June, 1864, that regula- 
tions were prescribed for holding examinations in preliminary 
subjects. The first examination was held in June, 1865, and 
included the subjects of arithmetic, geography, grammar, reading, 
writing, and spelling. In 1878, examinations were established in 
20 advanced academic subjects. The number of subjects has 
gradually increased until it is now more than 100. 

(a) Law Examinations. — Examinations for admission to the bar 
are conducted by a State board of examiners under the direction 
of the Court of Appeals. The Department has nothing to do with 
these examinations. Law students, before entering upon the study 
of law, must offer certain preliminary educational qualifications 
prescribed by the Court of Appeals. The examinations by which 
these qualifications are determined are under the direction of the 
Department. It is also authorized to accept the completion of 
certain higher courses of study as a substitute for these examina- 
tions. 

(b) Medical Examinations. — A certain amount of general edu- 
cation is required of all persons beginning the study of medicine. 
The University has supervision of the preliminary medical-student 
examinations, and is also the sole authority to issue licenses for the 
practice of medicine in the State. The examinations for candi- 
dates who desire to practice medicine are under the direction of 
boards of medical examiners appointed by the Regents. The mem- 
bers of these boards are leading physicians from various parts of 
the State. Since 1890 the authority to indorse diplomas or licenses 
of physicians from other States or countries has been vested in the 
Department. Previous to this date such authority was possessed by 
each of the medical colleges of the State. 

(c) Other Professional Examinations. — This division has charge, 
also of the examinations for candidates who desire licenses to 
practice dentistry, pharmacy, optometry and veterinary medicine in 
the State, and also to practice as public expert accountants, or 



14 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

architects, or who desire to become registered nurses. All licenses 
of this kind are issued by the University. 

(d) Teachers' Examinations. — This division also has charge of 
all teachers' examinations held in the State. These embrace train- 
ing school, training class, examinations held by district superintend- 
ents, and those for special and for life State certificates. 

(e) Other Examinations. — This division has charge of competi- 
tive examinations on which State scholarships in Cornell University 
are awarded and examinations in agriculture for persons desiring 
to qualify for the office of district superintendent. 

Administration Division. — This division has general super- 
vision of the internal workings of the Department subject to the 
orders of the Commissioner of Education. It has general charge 
of the mails, express matter, documents and printing, purchase of 
supplies, finances of the Department, and has direct supervision 
over the employees connected therewith; and such other employees 
of the Department as are not under the direction of some superior 
officer. It is also the duty of this division to see that expenditures 
are made in accordance with the requirements of the appropriation 
bills. It also receives all fees, has charge of all expense accounts, 
and pays Department salaries. This division is also charged with 
the duty of obtaining from all educational institutions in the State 
and all school districts such reports as they are required by law 
to make to the University or to the Education Department. It 
tabulates such reports and prepares general statistics on our educa- 
tional system. It makes all legal apportionments of State funds 
to the public schools of the State and to all other educational 
institutions entitled thereto. 

Attendance Division. — This division has the general super- 
vision and enforcement of the compulsory education law and the 
census laws. 

Educational Extension Division. — This division includes all 
agencies for the promotion of educational advantages for the 
assistance of those unable to attend the usual teaching institutions. 
The means employed in the extension of this work embrace summer 
schools, vacation schools, evening schools, correspondence schools, 
lecture courses, study clubs, reading circles, etc. The supervision 
of the incorporated public libraries of the State is under the direc- 
tion of this division. It also has charge of the traveling libraries. 



STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT 1 5 

The work relating to education for adult illiterates is connected with 
this division. 

School Buildings Division. — At present this division is charged 
with the inspection of school buildings and sites, and the approval 
of plans and specifications for repairs to school buildings and the 
construction of new buildings. 

LiSiw Division. — This division interprets the school law and 
all other statutes related in any way to the educational work of the 
State. It has direct charge of all contested appeals and presents 
them in proper form to the Commissioner of Education for deter- 
mination. It looks after the form and legality of charters issued 
by the Board of Regents and the interests of the Department in any 
litigation in the courts when the Department is thus involved. 

School Libraries Division. — This division has charge of all 
matfers pertaining to public school libraries and of the relation 
which such libraries bear to the instruction given in the schools. 

Visual Instruction Division. — This division has general charge 
of the collection of material for giving instruction by means of 
pictorial or graphic representation in geography, history, science and 
kindred subjects and of the distribution and loaning of such material 
to the communities, schools and other institutions entitled to receive 
the same. 

Creation or Abolishment of Divisions. — By concurrent action 
of the Regents and the Commissioner of Education the Department 
is divided into divisions. By similar action a new division may be 
created or an existing division abolished. 

Appointment of Officers of Department. — All officers of the 
Department are appointed by the Commissioner of Education subject 
to the approval of the Regents. 

Removals and Suspensions. — The Commissioner of Education 
with the approval of the Regents may remove at his pleasure any 
officer or employee of the Department. 

When the Regents are not in session he may suspend during his 
pleasure without salary any officer or employee tmtil the adjourn- 
ment of the succeeding meeting of the Regents. 

State Education Building. — The education building is exclu- 
sively set apart under the law for the use of the Education Depart-^ 
ment. The Regents andfithe Commissioner of Education are given 
power to assign the rooms in such building to the various divisions, 
officers and work of the Department. 



l6 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Misdemeanor Falsely Representing Education Department. — 

It is a misdemeanor for a firm, agent or other persen engaged in 
selling, publishing or manufacturing books, charts, apparatus or any 
other school supplies to falsely represent to any school officer or 
teacher that he is an agent or representative of the Education 
Department, the Regents, the Commissioner of Education or any 
other school officer. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

What constitutional provisions is there in relation to the maintenance of 
a public school system? Give a brief statement of the supervision exercised 
by the State over Educational afifairs. What power has the Board of Regents 
over the Education Department? Who is the chief officer of such Depart- 
ment? How many assistant commissioners are there? State their title. 
What is the general duty of each? How is work of the Department classi- 
fied? What is the duty of the director of the State library? When was the 
library established ? When was it placed under the direction of the 
Regents? When was it made a part of the University? What is the chief 
work of the State museum? State in general terms the work of the adminis- 
tration division. Atendance division. Educational extension division. 
Examinations and inspections division.- When were Regents examinations 
first suggested? First given? State the various purpose for which 
examinations are held. What is the chief work of the law division? School 
libraries division? Visual instruction division? How are divisions created 
or abolished? How are the officers of the Department appointed? ,How 
may an officer be removed? How may an officer be suspended? Under 
whose direction may rooms of the State education building be assigned? 
For what use is such building exclusively set aside? What prohibition is 
there as to falsely representing the Education Department, etc. What is 
the penalty? 



CHAPTER III 

PRESIDENT OF THE UNIVERSITY AND COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION 

[Article 4] 

Historical Sketch. — On June 19, 1812, the Governor of the 
State approved an act entitled "An Act for the Establishment of 
Common Schools." This act is the law which is regarded as the 
permanent foundation of the school system of the State. It pro- 
vided for a state supervisory school officer to be known as " Super- 
intendent of Common Schools." This was the first provision made 
by any state in the Union for a state supervisory school officer 
charged with the general administration of a state school system. 

Gideon Hawley of the City of Albany was chosen by the Council 
of Appointment to fill this office on January 14, 1813, and served 
in such capacity until February 22, 1821. Superintendent Hawley 
during the eight years he served the State as its common school 
superintendent built an enduring foundation upon which the present 
school system of the State was estabhshed. On February 22, 1821, 
he was removed from office by the appointment of another person 
to succeed him through action of the Council of Appointment. The 
reason for his removal was purely political. The action of the 
Council of Appointment in removing the chief educational officer 
of the State for a purely political reason, even in that early period, 
caused such general indignation throughout the State and was so 
resented by the people that within less than two months from the 
date of such action the Legislature, abolished the office, and the 
powers and duties of such office were conferred upon the Secretary 
of State. 

The Secretary of State served ex-officio as superintendent of 
common schools from April 3, 1821, until April 8, 1854, when the 
first State Superintendent of Public Instruction assumed the duties 
of his office. Chapter 97 of the Laws of 1854 created such office. 
The office of State Superintendent of Public Instruction was con- 
tinued until April i, 1904, when the Unification Act went into 

2 17 



IG NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

effect. Under the provisions of that act, the office of Commissioner 
of Education was created and the first Commissioner assumed the 
cjuties of his office April i, 1904. On July 2, 1913, by action of 
the Regents of the University, the office of President of the 
University and Commissioner of Education was created. 

It will thus be observed that the administration of pubHe school 
work has been under the direction of four State supervisory school 
officers, as follows : 

From January 14, 1813, to February 22, 1821, the Superintendent 
©f Common Schools ; 

From February 22, 1821, to April 8, 1854, the Secretary of State, 
who was ex-officio Superintendent of Common Schools; 

From April 8, 1854, to April i, 1904, the State Superintendent of 
Public Instruction; 

From April i, 1904, to July 2_, 1913, the Commissioner of Edu- 
cation; 

■Since July 2, 1913, the President of the University and Commis- 
sioner of Education. 

Mode of Election. — Under the law of 1904 the first Commis- 
sioner of Education was elected by joint ballot of the senate and 
assembly. The provisions of that act have now heen incorporated 
in the Education Law and under this law any vacancy in the office 
of Commissioner of Education must be filled by appointment by 
the Board of Regents. 

Term of Office. — The term of office of the first Commissioner 
of Education was six years. Since the expiration of the first six 
years, or since April i, 1910, the term of office of the Commissioner 
of Education has not been a fixed period, but such commissioner 
now serves during the pleasure of the Board of Regents. 

Eligibility. — The public officers' law of this State provides 
that all State officers shall be at least twenty-one years of age, a 
citizen of the United States, and a resident of the State. The 
Education law modifies the public officers' law by providing that 
such Commissioner of Education may or may not be a resident of 
the State. 

Removal. — The Commissioner of Education may be removed 
at any time by the Board of Regents for cause. 

Salary. — The salary of the Commissioner of Edxication has 
been $10,000 per year since 191 1. It was fixed at this amount by 



PRES. OF UNIVERSITY AND COM. OF EDUCATION I9 

the appropriation bill of 1910 and also by actions by the Board of 
Regents. 

Powers and Duties, — The powers and duties of the Commis- 
sioner of Education are so numerous that it is not practicable to 
consider them, except in a general way. For the specific duties of 
the commissioner in relation to any branch of work the chapter on 
such work should be consulted. The duties of the commissioner 
are executive and judicial. His more important powers and duties 
are as follows : 

Chief Executive Officer.-^ He is the chief executive officer of 
the State system of education and is required to enforce all the 
general and special laws relating to the educational system of the 
State and to execute all educational policies determined upon by 
the Board of Regents. 

General Supervision. — He has general supervision over all the 
public schools, normal schools, industrial schools, training"*schools, 
teachers' training classes, and libraries in the State. 

Indian Education. — He is charged with the duty of providing for 
the education of the Indian children in the State, and is directed to 
apportion an equitable amount of public money to Indian schools. 

Deaf and Dumb and Blind Institutions. — He also has supervision 
over all institutions in the State for the instruction of the deaf and 
dumb and blind, and is required to report annually to the State 
Legislature in relation thereto. He also appoints State pupils qual- 
ified under the law to all these institutions excepting the Institution 
for the Blind in Batavia. 

Trustee, etc. — He is ex-officio a trustee of Cornell University, 
and upon the results of competitive examinations appoints annually 
150 State scholars to that institution, who are entitled to free 
tuition. He also annually appoints 750 State scholars in the several 
colleges and universities in the State. 

Visual Instruction. — He is authorized to collect material and 
make all necessary arrangements and contracts to provide instruc- 
tion by means of pictorial or graphic representation in geography, 
history, science or kindred subjects. This instruction may be given 
in the schools, institutions and organizations under the supervision 
of the Regents. This material may also be loaned to artisans, 
mechanics and other citizens of the several communities of the 
State. 

Inspection of Schools. — He shall cause all schools and institu- 



20 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

tions under the statutes relating to education to be examined and 
inspected and to advise and guide all school officers in relation to 
their duties and the management of such institutions. A staff of 
inspectors is employed for this purpose. 

Annual Reports. — He is to prepare an annual report which must 
be submitted over the signaltures of the chancellor of the University 
and the Commissioner of Education to the State Legislature show- 
ing the condition of the common schools in the State and of all 
other schools and institutions under their supervision and subject to 
their visitation, and to include in such report those recommenda- 
tions upon school work, which in their opinion, will promote the 
advancement of public education. 

Supervision of Examination and Certification of Teachers. — He 
is to prescribe the regulations under which district superintendents 
may issue teachers' ertificates; to issue life State certificates to 
• those who have passed the examination required by law ; to issue 
college graduates' certificates to those who meet the requirements 
for such certificates; to .issue such other certificates as the rules 
require; to endorse under such regulations as he may adopt State 
certificates and normal-school diplomas issued in other States ; and 
to isswe temporary licenses for a period not to exceed one year for 
any supervisory district or city or any school district in the State. 

Revocation of Certificates. — For sufficient cause, he may revoke 
any State normal-school diploma, State certificate, college-graduates' 
certificate, school commissioners' certificate or other certificate 
issued in this State. He may also revoke his indorsement of any 
normal-school diploma or State certificate issued in another State. 

Prepare List of Normal Graduates. — He is required under law 
to keep in his office an alphabetical list of all persons who receive 
normal-school diplomas from the normal schools of the State. 

Remove School Officers. — He may, for valid reasons, remove 
from office any district superintendent, member of a board of edu- 
cation, or other school officer. He may also withhold the salary of 
a district superintendent and may remit it at his pleasure. 

Administer Affidavits. — He may take affidavits and administer 
oaths in any matter relative to school affairs. 

Prepare Registers, Blanks, etc. — He is charged with the duty of 
preparing such registers, blanks, forms, regulations, etc., as may be 
needed in transacting all business relating to the public-school 
system. 



PRES. OF UNIVERSITY AND COM. OF EDUCATION 21 

Enforcement of Compulsory Education Law. — He is also charged 
with the duty of enforcing the provisions of the compulsory 
education law. 

Physical Education. — He is charged with the duty of supervising 
the enforcement of the physical education law. 

Arbor Day. — He has authority to provide for the proper observ- 
ance of Arbor Day and Flag Day by the public schools of the State 
and is required to designate Arbor Day by proclamation. 

Apportionment of School Moneys. — He must apportion as 
directed by law the State school moneys, and may withhold for 
just cause part or all of the money due any school district, town, or 
city in the State. 

Decide Appeals. — He must hear and decide all cases of appeal, 
when properly brought before him by aggrieved parties, from the 
action of school officers or school meetings. 

Issue Stays, Orders, etc. — He may, upon application in due form, 
issue an order restraining school officers from performing any of 
the duties conferred upon them. He may also issue orders directing 
school officers to perform any of their duties which they may have 
refused to perform. 

School Libraries. — He has general supervision of all the school 
district libraries in the State, and approves the books which are 
purchased with public money to be placed in such libraries. He 
also apportions library money to school districts as directed by law 
and prescribes regulations under which the books of school libraries 
may be loaned. 

Hold Property in Trust. — He may hold in trust for the benefit 
of the common schools of the State, or for the schools of any 
portion of the State, real or personal estate which may be granted 
in any manner for such purpose. He also has supervision of any 
trust fund held by trustees for school purposes, and must require 
them to report regarding its condition and income at such times and 
in such form as he deems advisable. (Article 19.) 

Normal Schools. — He appoints members of local boards of nor- 
mal schools, appoints pupils to such schools and determines the 
requirements for admission. He determines the number of teachers 
to be employed in such schools, and approves their appointment and 
the amount of their salary. 

May Appoint Teachers and Open Schools in a City or School 
District. — When the local authorities of any city or school district 



22 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

neglect or refuse to appoint teachers, janitors, etc., and also neglect 
or refuse to open the schools of a city or school district the State 
Commissioner of Education may appoint such teachers, janitors, 
etc., and open and manage such schools. October 4, 1897, State 
Superintendent Skinner exercised this power in the city of Water- 
vliet and his action was sustained by the supreme court. (For a 
full discussion of this power see pages 1 18-125, vol. i, Annual 
Report of State Superintendent of Public Instruction for 1897.) 

Regulations. — The Commissioner of Education may prescribe 
any reasonable regulations for the government of the common 
schools which do not conflict with the laws and policy of the State. 
(184 N. Y. 421.) 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

What was the title of the office of the first State supervisory school 
officer? When was the office created? How was such officer chosen? When 
was the office aboHshed? To whom were the duties of the office then 
transferred? Why? For what period did such officer act in this capacity? 
When did the first State Superintendent of Public Instruction assume the 
duties of his office? When was the office of Commissioner of Education 
created? How was the first Commissioner chosen? How are vacancies to be 
filled? What is the term of office? Who are eligible to the office? How may 
he be removed? What is the salary? What is the two-fold character of the 
duties of the State Commissioner? What are his general duties? What is his 
duty in relation to Indian schools? Deaf and dumb and blind institutions? 
Cornell University? Visual instruction? Inspection of schools, etc.? Annual 
reports? Examination and licensing of teachers? Revoking certificates? 
Lists of normal school graduates? Removing school officers? Administering 
affidavits? Preparing registers, blanks, etc.? Enforcing the compulsory 
education law? Arbor day? Apportionment of school moneys? Appeals, 
stays, orders, etc.? School libraries? Holding property in trust? Normal 
school boards? Under what conditions may State Commissioner appoint 
teachers, etc? . 



CHAPTER IV 

RURAL SCHOOL SUPERVISION 

[Article 14] 

Historical Development. — The act of 1795 creating the school 
system of the State provided that the electors of each town should 
elect at their annual town meetings, from three to seven commis- 
sioners of schools. These officers had supervision of the schools 
under their jurisdiction, and the distribution of State money appro- 
priated for the support of schools. During the first year after the 
passage of this act, the supervisor, the town clerk, and the assessors 
of each town performed the duties of commissioners of schools. 
These commissioners received no compensation for their services. 

In 1812 the number of town commissioners was fixed at three 
for each town by the State Legislature. These officers were to be 
chosen as before by the people at annual town meetings, and were 
to receive a salary fixed by the people at the annual town meetings. 
To them were given the superintendence and management of 
schools, and they were authorized to divide the towns into school 
districts. The same act provided that the people should select at 
the annual town meeting, a number of persons, not to exceed six, 
who, with the commissioners, should be inspectors, and these inspec- 
tors were required to inspect schools and to examine and license 
teachers. This plan continued until 1841, when the number of town 
inspectors was fixed at two. 

In 1841 the office of Deputy Superintendent of Common Schools 
was created by the State Legislature. Each county was entitled to 
one deputy, and counties having more than 200 schools were entitled 
to two deputies. These officers were appointed by boards of super- 
sviors for their respective counties, and the term of office was two 
years. Their duties were to visits and inspect the schools under 
their jurisdiction, and to examine and license the teachers employed 
therein. 

In 1843 the title of these officers was changed to County Superin- 

23 



24 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

tendent of Common Schools, and increased powers were given them. 
The right to hear appeals was given to county superintendents in 
that year, and all appeals were brought before these officers for 
determination before they could be taken to the State Superintend- 
ent of Common Schools. These officials were entitled to two dollars 
per day for each day necessarily devoted to their work, but they 
could not receive an amount to exceed five hundred dollars per 
year. In 1847 the State Legislature abolished this office. 

In 1843 the offices of town commissioners and town inspectors 
were abolished by the State Legislature, and a new officer known 
as the Town Superintendent of Common Schools was created. 
These superintendents were elected by the people at the annual 
town meetings. Their term of office was one year, and they 
received a salary of one dollar and twenty-five cents per day for 
actual time necessarily devoted to their work. To these officers 
were given the general supervision of schools, and the other duties 
which had been exercised by town commissioners and inspectors. 
Upon the abolishment of county superintendents in 1847, the duties 
of town superintendents were largely increased, and the duties of 
these officers from that year until 1856 were quite similar to the 
duties conferred upon school commissioners. Upon the creation of 
the office of school commissioner in 1856, by chapter 179 of the 
laws of that year, thie office of town superintendent was abolished. 

The office of school commissioner was abolished by chapter 607 
of the Laws of 1910 and the office of district superintendent of 
schools created. These officers entered upon the discharge of their 
duties January i, 1912. 

.) 

SUPERVISORY DISTRICTS 

Territory Embraced — Number of. — All territory of the State 
outside of cities and school districts of five thousand population or 
more which employ a superintendent of schools must be divided 
into supervisory districts. The law establishes 207 of these dis- 
tricts and apportions them among the counties of the State as 
follows : 

a. Hamilton, Putnam, Rockland, Schenectady, each one; 

b. Chemung, Fulton, Genesee, Montgomery, Nassau, Schuyler, 
Seneca, Yates, each two; 

c. Albany, Clinton, Columbia, Cortland, Essex, Greene, Liv- 



RURAL SCHOOL SUPERVISOR 2$ 

ingston, Niagara, Orange, Orleans, Rensselaer, Schoharie, Suffolk, 
Sullivan, Tioga, Tompkins, Warren, Wyoming, each three; 

d. Broome, Dutchess, Franklin, Herkimer, Lewis, Madison, 
Monroe, Ontario, Saratoga, Ulster, Washington, Wayne, West- 
chester, each four; 

e. Allegany, Cattaraugus, Cayuga, Chenango, Erie, Onondaga, 
Oswego, each five; 

f. Chautauqua, Delaware, Jefferson, Otsego, each six; 

g. Oneida, Steuben, each seven; 
h. Saint Lawrence, eight districts. 

How Organized. — In a county entitled to two or more super- 
visory districts the school commissioner of each school commis- 
sioner district and the supervisor of each town in such county were 
required to meet at the county seat on the third Tuesday in April, 
191 1, at 10 o'clock in the forenoon and divide such county into the 
number of supervisory districts to which it was entitled under the 
law. In the formation of such districts no town could be divided. 
The law directs that the territory of such districts shall be compact 
and contiguous and formed as nearly as possible on the basis of 
an equal division of the territory and the number of school districts. 

Call and Organization of Meeting. — The county clerk of each 
county entitled to two or more supervisory districts was required to 
give ten days' notice in writing to each supervisor and school com- 
missioner of such meeting. The county clerk was also required to 
call the meeting to order at the proper hour. The school commis- 
sioners and supervisors present were required to elect from their 
number a chairman and a clerk. 

Record of Proceedings. — The clerk of such meeting was required 
to deposit with the county clerk a copy of the proceedings of such 
meeting. Such copy must have been certified by the chairman and 
the clerk. The county clerk should immediately upon receipt of 
such proceedings have filed a certified copy thereof with the Com- 
missioner of Education. 

SCHOOL DIRECTORS 

Number of. — There shall be two school directors for each 
town. 

When and How Chosen. — Two school directors shall be 
chosen in each town at the general election in 1910. In 1912, and 
every fifth year thereafter, and in 191 5 and every fifth year there' 



26 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

after, one school director shall be elected in each town. These 
directors must be chosen at the general election. In towns other 
than in the counties of Nassau and Suffolk, in which biennial town 
meetings are held in the winter or spring months instead of at the 
general election, school directprs shall be elected at such biennial 
town meetings." The law provides that such directors shall be nomi- 
nated and elected in the same manner as t0wn officers chosen at a 
town meeting held at the time of a general election. The pro- 
visions of the election law relating to the nomination and election 
of town officers chosen at a town meeting held at the time of the 
general election applies to the election of these directors. 

Filing Certificates of Nomination. — Under the election law 
the certificates of nomination of school directors must be filed in 
duplicate. One certificate should be filed with the town clerk and 
one with the county clerk in all counties except Erie and in that 
county with the commissioner of election. 

Notice of Election. — The notice of the election of school direc- 
tors must be given by the county clerk and not by the Secretary 
of State. The Attorney-General has held that school directors are 
to be voted for at a general election, and that the county clerk 
must give the notice of election under authority of section 293 of 
the Election Law. 

Ballots. — The election law makes different provisions for the 
printing of ballots for town officers elected at a general election 
in even numbered years and in odd numbered years. The names 
of school directors must therefore be printed as follows : 

1. The names of candidates for school directors who are to be 
elected in an even numbered year in towns holding their town 
meetings at the time of the general election should be printed with 
other town officers to be voted for and upon a separate ballot. In 
such towns the ballot containing the names of candidates for town 
officers, including school directors, should be separate from the 
ballot containing the names of candidates for county and State 
officers. 

2. In towns which hold their town meetings at a time other than 
the time of the general election, the names of school directors must 
also be printed upon a separate ballot. 

3. When school directors are to be elected in an odd numbered 
year, there should be but one ballot and the names of such directors 
should be printed on the same ballot as the names of candidates for 



RURAL SCHOOL SUPERVISOR 27 

Other officers voted for in such town at the general election of that 
year. This rule applies to the election of school directors in 191 5 
and 1917. 

When separate ballots are required, the town clerk must provide 
them. 

An important question arises as to whether women may vote for 
a school director. A district superintendent is an officer chosen at 
^a general election in this .State, and the State Constitution provides 
that the right of suffrage at these elections shall be restricted to 
male citizens. The town law also provides that town officers shall 
be chosen by the electors of the town. A school director is a town 
officer and the electors of a town are also restricted to male citizens. 
The Court of Appeals of this State decided that a law to give 
women the right to vote for the office of school commissioner was 
unconstitutional. 

In 1892 the State Legislature enacted a law extending the right 
of suffrage to women in the election of school commissioners. This 
act provided that persons entitled to vote for school commissioners 
should be registered as provided by law, in the same manner as those 
who were entitled to vote for county officers. 

A test case on the constitutionality of this law aros^ in Onondaga 
county. Acting under the authority of this law, Mrs. Matilda J. 
Gage registered in the third election district in the town of Manlius, 
October 23, 1893. The board of inspectors were requested to 
remove her name from the registry, but refused to do so. An 
application was then made to a justice of the Supreme Court for an 
order to strike her name from the registry on the sole ground that 
she was not a qualified voter by reason of her sex. The application 
was granted upon the ground that the law conferring upon women 
the right to vote for school commissioners was unconstitutional. 
The inspectors obeyed the order of the court, and the name of Mrs. 
Gage was stricken from the registry. An appeal was then taken 
by Mrs. Gage to the General Term of the Fourth Judicial Depart- 
ment, which affirmed the action of the lower court in issuing such 
order. An appeal was then taken by Mrs. Gage from the action of 
th» General Term to the Court of Appeals, and on January 16, 
1894, the Court of Appeals affirmed the action of the lower courts. 
The opinion of this court was written by Justice Finch and con- 
curred in by all members of the court. The ground on which the 
court based its decision was that section i, article 2, of the State 



28 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Constitution provides that none but male citizens are entitled to 
vote for constitutional officers elected by the people ; that the office 
of school commissioner is a constitutional office, and that the law 
in question conferring upon women the right to vote for school 
commissioner was a direct contravention of the State Constitution. 
This decision undoubtedly applies to the election of school directors. 
(141 N. Y. 112.) 

Term of Office. — All directors chosen in 1912 and thereafter 
shall serve for a period of five years from January i following 
their election. 

Oath of Office. — All persons elected or appointed to this office 
are required to take the oath of office prescribed by the State Con- 
stitution before entering upon the discharge of the duties of the 
office and not later than thirty days after their election. This oath 
may be taken before a justice of the peace or a notary public, and 
it must be filed in the office of the town clerk of the town. 

Vacancies. — This office may be vacated (i) by filing a written 
resignation with the town clerk: (2) by removing from the town; 
(3) by death. If a town fails to elect a director a vacancy shall be 
deemed to exist. 

Filling Vacanc5^. — A vacancy in the office of school director 
shall be filled by the town board of the town in which such vacancy 
exists. 

Salary. — Each director shall receive two dollars per day and 
his necessary traveling expenses. The town board is required to 
audit the same. 

DISTRICT SUPERINTENDENT 

How Chosen. — A district superintendent is chosen by the 
school directors of the towns comprising a supervisory district. 
These directors meet as a board and each director is entitled to one 
vote. The election shall be by ballot and the person receiving a 
majority of all votes cast shall be elected. 

Meeting of Directors. — The board of school directors shall 
meet at 11 o'clock in the forenoon on the third Tuesday in June, 
1916, and every fifth year thereafter to elect a district superinteq^d- 
ent of schools. The clerk of the board should give each director 
ten days' notice in writing of the hour, date and place of meeting. 

Proceedings of Meeting. — Within three days after the close 
of a meeting of a board of directors the clerk of such board shall 



RURAL SCHOOL SUPERVISOR 29 

file with the county clerk a copy of the proceedings of such meeting 
certified by himself and the chairman. 

Certificate of Election. — The county clerk on receiving official 
notice of the election of a district superintendent of schools should 
deliver to the person elected a certificate of election attested by his 
signature with the seal of the county. The county clerk should also 
transmit to the Commissioner of Education a duplicate of such 
certificate. 

Failure to Elect a District Superintendent. — The law govern- 
ing the election of district superintendents pro'^ndes that if the 
directors fail to elect a district superintendent of schools before the 
first day of January following the date on which the meeting to 
elect the superintendent is held, and a vacancy exists in such office, 
the county judge shall appoint such superintendent, jvho shall serve 
until the board of directors shall fill such vacancy. The question 
has been raised in some districts where the board failed to elect a 
superintendent as to whether or not the superintendent in office 
should hold over or a vacancy existed which the county judge 
should fill by appointment. The law specifically provides that a dis- 
trict superintendent of schools, unless removed, shall hold office 
until his successor is chosen and qualified. If a board of directors 
fail to elect a district superintendent the superintendent then in 
office under this provision of law is what is known as a hold-over 
officer. This contention is also sustained by the provision which 
confers upon the county judge the power to appoint a superintendent 
in case no election is reached, as this particular subdivision of the 
law contains the expression " and a vacancy exists in such office." 
Since the law provides that a district superintendent shall hold office 
until his successor is chosen and qualified, it must be held that no 
vacancy exists which the county judge may fill by appointment. 
The provision of law conferring upon a county judge the power to 
appoint a district superintendent if a board of directors failed to 
elect and a vacancy existed in that office was intended to meet a 
situation which might have occurred at the first election of district 
superintendents. There were at that time no district superintend- 
ents in office. The office of their predecessors — that of school 
commissioner — was abolished under the terms of the law creating 
district superintendents. If a board of directors failed to elect by 
January ist following the date set for a meeting for that purpose 
it would occur that there was no supervising school officer in such 



30 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

district. To meet this situation it was provided that in such case 
the county judge might appoint. It has been held, therefore, that 
the power conferred upon a county judge to appoint was Hmited to 
the first election, or to an election thereafter in cases where there 
is a vacancy^ in the office of district superintendent and no election 
was reached. 

Vacancies. — The office of district superintendent of schools 
shall be vacant upon : 

1. The death of an incumbent. * 

2. His removal from office by the Commissioner of Education. 

3. His removal from the county. 

4. His filing in the office of the clerk of the county his , written 
resignation. 

5. His acceptance of the office of supervisor, town clerk, or trus- 
tee of a school district. 

6. His failure to take and file the oath of office as provided in 
this article. 

Filling Vacancy. — A vacancy in the office of district super- 
intendent shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term 
by the board of school directors. Upon direction of the Commis- 
sioner of Education the clerk of the board of school directors must 
call a meeting of such board to fill such vacancy. All provisions of- 
law in relation to the election of a district superintendent for a full 
term including notices, filing proceedings, etc., apply to the election 
of a superintendent to fill a vacancy. 

Term of Office. — The term of office of district superintendents 
elected in 1916 and every five years thereafter shall be for five years 
and their terms of office shall begin ^n the first day of August 
following their election. The object of "this arrangement is to have 
the term of a district superintendent begin at the beginning of a 
school year and terminate at the close of a. school year. 

A district superintendent unless removed holds office until his 
successor is elected and qualifies. 

Qualifications of District Superintendents. — 1. To be eligible 
to election to the office of district superintendent of schools a person 
must be at least twenty-one years of age, a citizen of the United 
States and a resident of the State, but he need not be a resident of 
the supervisory district for which he is elected at the time of his 
election. Such superintendent must, however, become a resident 
of the county containing the district for which he has been elected 



RURAL SCHOOL SUPERVISOR 3 1 ' 

on or before the date on which his term of ofifice begins. Failure 
to acquire such residence will be deemed a removal from the county. 
No person shall be ineligible on account of sex. 

2. In addition thereto he must possess or be entitled to receive 
a certificate authorizing him to teach in any of the public schools 
of the State without further examination and he shall also pass an 
examination prescribed by the Commissioner of Education on the 
supervision of courses of study in agriculture and teaching the same. 
The holder of a normal school diploma issued by one of the State 
normal schools of this State, a diploma issued by the New York 
State College for Teachers, a college graduate certificate, or a life 
State certificate satisfies the requirement of the law in relation to 
a teachers' certificate. 

3. A district superintendent who is removed from office shall not 
be eligible to election to such office in any supervisory district for a 
period of five years. 

Not to be Interested in Certain Business or to Accept Rew^ards, 
et cetera. — A district superintendent of schools shall not: 

1. Be directly or indirectly interested otherwise than as author 
in the 'sale, publication, or manufacture of school books, maps, 
charts, or school apparatus or in the sale or manufacture of school 
furniture or any other school or library supplies. 

2. Be directly or indirectly interested in any contract made by the 
trustees of a school district. 

3. Be directly or indirectly interested in any agency or bureau 
maintained to obtain or aid in obtaining positions for teachers or 
superintendents. 

4. Directly or indirectly receive any emolument, gift, pay, reward 
or promise of pay or reward for recommending or procuring the 
sale, use or adoption or aiding in procuring the sale, use or adoption 
of any book, map, chart, school apparatus or furniture or other 
supplies for any school or library or for recommending a teacher or 
aiding a teacher in obtaining an appointment to teach. 

Not to Engage in Other Business. — A district superintendent 
of schools shall devote his whole time to the performance of 
the duties of his office and shall not engage in any Other occupation 
or profession. Such time as shall not necessarily be devoted by a 
district superintendent of schools to the performance of the clerical 
and administrative work of his office shall be devoted to the visitjk- 
tion and inspection of the schools maintained in his supervisory 



32 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

district. A district superintendent must under this requirement of 
the law devote his time to the supervision of his schools as exclu- 
sively as a superintendent of" a city or to the same extent that a 
teacher devotes her time to her school. 

Removal of District Superintendent From Office. — The Com- 
missioner of Education may, by an order under the seal of the 
Education Department, remove a district superintendent of schools 
from office whenever he is satisfied that such superintendent: 

1. Has been guilty of immoral conduct; 

2. Is incompetent to perform any official duty ; or 

3. Has persistently neglected or wilfully refused to perform 
any lawful duty imposed upon him. 

Must Take Oath of Office. — A district superintendent of 
schools before entering upon the discharge of the duties of his 
office, and not later than five days after the date on which his term 
of office is to commence, shall take the oath of office prescribed by 
the constitution. Such oath may be taken before a county clerk, 
a justice of the peace, or a notary public and must be filed in the 
office of the clerk of the county, , 

Salary, — i. Each district superintendent s'hall receive an annual 
salary from the State of fifteen hundred dollars, payable monthly 
by the Commissioner of Education from moneys appropriated 
therefor. 

Increase in Superintendent's Salary. — The law authorizes the 
supervisors of the towns comprising a supervisory district to increase 
the salary of a district superintendent by the adoption, of a resolu- 
tion to that effect. When such action is taken by the supervisors 
of the several towns of the supervisory district, the resolution 
should be filed with the clerk of the board of supervisors and a 
duplicate thereof filed with the county treasurer. It theh beconies 
the duty of the board of supervisors to levy against the taxable 
property of the towns comprising the supervisory district an amount 
to pay the increase authorized in the salary of such superintendent. 
The failure of the board of supervisors to take such action is 
proper ground for instituting a writ of mandamus. The courts 
have held that in such cases the board of supervisors must, within 
a reasonable time, convene and levy a tax against the towns com- 
prising the supervisory district, for the purpose of paying such 
sa.lary. (See People ex rel. Wingate v. Board of Supervisors, 
Schenectady County, 79 Misc. 641.) 



RURAL SCHOOL SUPERVISOR 33 

Expenses. — The Commissioner of Education shall quarterly 
audit and allow the actual sworn expense incurred by each district 
superintendent of schools in the performance of his official duties, 
but the amount of such expense allowed shall not exceed in any year 
three hundred dollars. Such expenses shall be paid by the Commis- 
sioner of Education from moneys appropriated therefor. 

Printing and Office Supplies. — A board of supervisors may 
authorize by resolution an expenditure to meet expenses of printing 
incurred by a district superintendent for official matters, or of the 
purchase of necessary office supplies. The county is not liable for 
expenses for either of these purposes unless the board of super- 
visors first passes a resolution authorizing expenditures for such 
purposes. 

Salary May be Withheld. — The Commissioner of Education, 
may, whenever he is satisfied that a district superintendent of 
schools has persistently neglected to perform an official duty, with- 
hold payment of the whole or any part of such superintendent's 
salary as it shall become due and he may also withhold any sum to 
which such superintendent shall be entitled for expenses and the 
amount thus withheld shall be forfeited ; but said commissioner may 
in his discretion remit such forfeiture in whole or in part. 

Performing Duties of Another District Superintendent. — A 
district superintendent, when requested in writing by a superintend- 
ent of an adjoining district, may perform any of the official duties 
of the superintendent of such adjoining district. Upon an order 
from the Commissioner of Education, he must perform such duties. 

PoM^ers and Duties. — A district superintendent is the super- 
visory school officer for his district. (For the specific duties of a 
superintendent in relation to any branch of school work, consult the 
chapter on such subject.) The more important powers and duties 
of this officer are as follows: 

, Supervision. — One of the most important duties of a superin- 
tendent is that of supervision. He is required by law to visit and 
examine all the schools and school districts in his jurisdiction. It 
is his duty to advise teachers in relation to their methods of teach- 
ing and the management and discipline of their schools. He is 
charged with recommending to teachers and boards of education 
courses of study and such changes in the general management of 
schools as will best promote educational interests. He should see 
3 



34 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

that the grounds and outbuildings are in proper condition, and that 
the school is equipped as required by law to perform the best work 
possible. 

Establish District Boundaries. — When the records of school dis- 
tricts are defective and not properly filed in the offices of town 
clerks, or when the boundaries of school districts are indefinite or in 
dispute, it is the duty of the district superintendent having jurisdic- 
tion, to establish such boundaries and to see that proper records 
thereof are filed in the town clerk's office. In order to do this, a 
superintendent may employ surveyors to estabhsh lines, prepare 
maps, etc., and any expense necessary for this purpose is a charge 
upon the town in which the district or districts affected are located. 

May Order Repairs. — When, in the opinion of a district superin- 
tendent, it is necessary for the health or comfort-of pupils to make 
repairs or alterations on a school-house or outbuildings, he may 
direct the board of education of the district or town to make such 
repairs or alterations at an expense not to exceed $200. The board 
of education, however, may vote an additional amount. 

May Order Furniture Supplied. — When, in the opinion of a 
superintendent, the furniture in a schoolroom is unfit for use and 
not worth repairing, or when the supply is insufficient, he may 
direct the board of education of the district or town to provide new 
furniture at an expense not to exceed $100. 

Order Nuisance Abated. — A superintendent may also direct the 
board of education of any school district or town to abate any 
nuisance in or upon the premises under the jurisdiction of such 
board in any school district. 

May Condemn School Building. — A superintendent has the 
authority, when in his opinion- a schoolhouse is unfit for use and 
not worth repairing, to issue an order to the board of education 
having jurisdiction condemning such school building, and to direct 
in such order the amount necessary, in his judgment, to erect a 
building suitable for the needs of the district. Previous to 1897 a 
school commissioner could not exceed $800 in his estimate of the 
amount necessary for the erection of a building. The Legislature 
of that year amended the law by removing this limit and leaving 
the amount to the discretion of the commissioner. A district 
superintendent has the same discretion. " If a school building in 
the town shall have been condemned by the district superintendent- 
as unfit for use and not worth repairing and the amount required 



RURAL SCHOOL SUPERVISOR 35 

to be raised by tax therefor shall exceed the sum of five thousand 
dollars the board of education shall submit a proposition for the 
construction of such new building to the qualified school electors of 
the town as above provided. If the amount to be raised for the 
erection of a new building in place of a building which has been 
condemned is less than five thousand dollars the amount thereof 
shall be included in the annual school tax budget of the town. 
Except as herein provided the board of education of a town shall 
be subject to the same powers and duties in relation to the erection 
of a new schoolhouse, when the schoolhouse in a district in such 
town has been condemned, which are imposed upon trustees of 
school districts under the provisions of the education law." (See 
sub. 2, sec, 348, chap. 328, Laws 1917.) 

Examine and License Teachers. — It is the duty of district super- 
intendents to conduct examinations for teachers' certificates, under 
such rules and regulations as shall be prescribed by the Commis- 
sioner of Education, and to license those who are found to be 
qualified under such regulations. 

Revocation of Certificates. — A district superintendent may annul 
any teacher's certificate, normal school diploma, State certificate, or 
college-graduate's certificate, for immoral conduct on the part of 
the holder of such certificate. Since the passage of the Consolidated 
School Law of 1894 a school commissioner has not had authority to 
revoke a certificate upon any other ground than that of immoral 
conduct and this restriction applies to a district superintendent. 

Administer Oaths, etc. — A district superintendent may admin- 
ister oaths or take affidavits in all matters relating to school work, 
but without charge or fee. 

Take Testimony in Appeals. — When directed by the Commis- 
sioner of Education, a district superintendent must take and report 
to him testimony in any appeal case. A superintendent has the 
authority to issue subpoenas and compel the attendance of witnesses. 
A failure to obey such subpoena subjects the offender to a fine 
of $25. 

Reports. — A district superintendent is required by law to obtain 
reports from the boards of education of towns and of all school 
districts not under the township law within his jurisdiction and to 
file an abstract of such reports annually with the Commissioner of 
Education. He is also required to submit reports from time to 
time to the Commissioner of Education, giving such information 



36 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

relative to the schools in his district and such suggestions upon the 
educational work of the State as the Commissioner shall request. 

Subject to Regulations of Commissioner of Education. — A dis- 
trict superintendent is subject to such rules and regulations as the 
Commissioner of Education shall from time to time adopt. Appeals 
from a district superintendent's acts and decisions may be taken to 
the Commissioner of Education. 

Call School Meetings. — A district superintendent may, in certain 
cases, call annual and special school meetings, and must call the first 
School meeting in a new school district. (See chapter on school 
meetings.) 

Rooms for Examinations. — A district superintendent can require 
the board of education of any school district, or town to furnish 
him with a suitable room or rooms in school buildings for the pur- 
pose of holding any examination appointed under the direction of 
the Commissioner of Education. 

Dividing Territory into School Districts. — A district superintend- 
ent has the authority under the law to alter or dissolve school dis- 
tricts. He must, of course, take action of this kinS in accordance 
with the terms of the township law. Under the provision of that 
statute, each school district in the State is continued as such district 
existed at the time the township law became effective. Before an 
order of a district superintendent consolidating two or more school 
districts may become effective, such order must be approved by a 
majority vote of the town board of education of the town or 1;owns 
in which such school districts are located, and thereafter such action 
must be approved by a majority vote of the qualified' electors of 
each district present and voting at a meeting of the districts con- 
solidated by such order. 

Appointment of Members of Boards of Education. — A district 
superintendent is authorized by law to fill a vacancy in the ofhce 
of member of a board of education of a union free school district 
by appointment, when such vacancy has existed for thirty days or 
more. 

Under the provisions of the township law a district superintend- 
ent is also authorized to fill a vacancy which has existed in an office 
of a member of a town board of education for thirty days, by the 
appointment of a person qualified to vote at school meetings in the 
town. The person appointed to such vacancy holds the office until 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 37 

the next annual town school meeting, when the vacancy should be 
filled for the balance of the unexpired term. 

Recommend Appointment vf Normal School Pupils. — He has the 
power to recommend to the Commissioner of Education for appoint- 
ment as pupils in the State normal schools such persons as are 
qualified and as, in his judgment, would become successful teachers 
by receiving a normal school training. 

Apportion School Money. — He is required to apportion the State 
school moneys to the various school districts under his supervision 
as directed by law. 

Assemble Teachers. — To assemble all the teachers of his district 
by towns, or otherwise, on days other than legal holidays when 
schools are not in sessipn for conference on the course of study, 
counsel and advise on discipline and school management and for 
the discussion of school problems for the promotion of the educa- 
tional interests of the districts. 

Meetings of School Officers. — To hold meetings of members of 
boards of education and other school officers to advise and counsel 
them in relation to their duties and particularly in relation to the 
repair, construction, heating, ventilating and lighting of school- 
houses and improving and adorning the school grounds. To advise 
such boards in relation to the employment of teachers, the adoption 
of textbooks and the purchase of library books, school apparatus, 
furniture and supplies. 

Inspect Training Classes. — To inspect the work done in a train- 
ing class maintained in his district and to report to the Commissioner 
of Education on the efficiency of the instruction given and observa- 
tion and practice work of the members of such class. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

What provision did the act of 1795 contain relative to the election of 
commissioners? What were the duties of these officers? Who performed 
the duties of these officers during the first year after the passage of this act? 
What compensation did commissioners receive? What change did the act of 
1812 make in relation to the number of these commissioners? What 
compensation was provided? How fixed? What new office did this act 
of 1812 create? What was the duty of these inspectors? What change was 
made in the number of inspectors in 1841 ? When was the office of deputy 
superintendent of common schools created? How many deputies did each 
county have? How were they appointed? What were their duties? What 
change was made in the title of this office in 1843? What provision was 



38 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

made by the act of 1843 in. relation to appeals? What compensation was paid 
these officers? When was this office abolished? 

When wa^the offices of commissioners and inspectors abolished? What 
new offices were created in this year? How were these officials chosen? 
For what period? AVhat salary was paid them? What were their duties? 
Describe their duties between 1847 and 1856? When were these offices 
abolished? Why? Have women a legal right to vote for school directors? 
Why not? Give history of law of 1892 and a test case which arose under 
such law? What is the term of office of school directors? How may the 
office be vacated? How may such vacancy be filled? What salary does a 
director receive? What territory is divided into supervisory districts? How 
many districts are authorized? How are they distributed? How organized? 
When? How is meeting called for such purpose? What disposition is made 
of the proceedings of such meetings? How many school directors in each 
town? How chosen? When? How nominated? How are nomination 
certificates filed? Who gives notices of election? State the two cases when 
the ballot containing the names of school directors must be a separate ballot 
from that containing names of candidates for State and county officers. When 
printed on same ballot? 

How is a district superintendent chosen? How many votes is each director 
entitled to? When is the first meeting of such directors? Who calls such 
meeting? How is a board organized? When does such board meet to elect 
a district superintendent? What notice of the meeting is required? What 
becomes of the proceedings of such meetings? Who issues a certificate of 
election? If a board fails to elect a superintendent, how is such officer 
chosen? Mention six ways in which the office of district superintendent may 
be vacated? How is a vacancy in such office filled? What is the term of the 
first superintendents chosen? What the term thereafter?- What is the object 
of this arrangement? What qualifications are specified for this office? How 
does removal from such office affect the qualifications of the officer' removed? 

What prohibitions does the law prescribe as to the business interests of a 
district superintendent? What is the requirement of the lav/ in relation to 
the work a superintendent may engage in? Who may remove a district 
superintendent? State three grounds for removal. When must a super- 
intendent take the oath of office ? Who may administer it ? What salary is 
paid a superintendent? Who paj^s this salary? How may the salary be 
increased? What provision is made to meet the expenses of a district 
superintendent? Who may withhold a superintendent's salary? For what 
reasons? 

Who may remove a superintendent from office? Upon what ground? 
When may a superintendent perform official duties for the superintendent of 
an adjoining district? When must a superintendent perform such duties? 
What are the duties of a superintendent in relation to supervision? In 
establishing boundaries? Whom may he employ for this purpose? To whom 
is such expense chargeable? When may a superintendent order repairs on 
building? To what amount? When may he order furniture purchased? To 
what amount? When may he order nuisances abated? When may he 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 39 

condemn a school house? What amount may he direct to be expended to 
erect a building in the place of the one condemned? What change was made 
by the Legislature of 1897 in relation to the amount a commissioner could 
direct to be expended? What discretion has a superintendent? 

What is his duty in relation to examination and licensing of teachers? 
What certificates may a superintendent revoke? Upon what ground? May 
he revoke a certificate upon any other ground? What oaths or affidavits may 
he administer? Is 'he entitled to fees for such service? When may he take 
testimony in appeal cases before the State department? What special 
authority has he in such cases? What reports is he required to obtain? 
What reports must he make? To what regulations is he subject? To whom 
may appeals from his acts and decisions be taken? What school meetings 
may he sometimes call? What accommodations can he require for 
examinations? What power has he to divide the territory of his district? 
When may he appoint a trustee? What are his duties in relation to normal 
school pupils? State moneys? When may he assemble the teachers of hia 
district? The school officers ? What is his duty in relation to training classes? 



CHAPTER V 

DUTIES OF SUPERVISORS, TOWN CLERKS, COUNTY TREASURERS, DISTRICT 
ATTORNEYS, AND COUNTY JUDGES, IN RELATION TO SCHOOL MATTERS 

SUPERVISORS 

[Article 13] 

Trustees of Gospel and School Lands. — Supervisors are made 
the trustees of gospel and school lands. 

Annual Return of School Money. — Each supervisor must make 
a return in writing on the first Tuesday of February in each year 
to the County treasurer, showing the amount of money in his hands 
for teachers' salaries and the districts to which such money belongs. 
After such date he should not pay out any of such money until he 
receives the next certificate of apportionment from the district 
superintendent. 

Disbursement of School Moneys. — It is the duty of super- 
visors to pay upon the order of the board of education of a district 
or town school treasurer any money in his hands belonging to such 
district or town and applicable to the payment of teachers' salaries, 
or for tuition and transportation of pupils, or library purposes. 

Payment to Collector or Treasurer. — Whenever the collector 
or treasurer of a district or town shall present to a supervisor a copy 
of the bond which such collector or treasurer has executed, certified 
by the board of education, the supervisor shall pay to such collector 
or treasurer all the moneys in his hands due such district or town 
that may be applied upon the payment of the salaries of teachers. 

Accounts of Receipts and Disbursements. — A supervisor 
should keep a correct account of all moneys received and disbursed 
by him, and should make a report thereof, with proper vouchers, 
to the town board at its annual meeting. 

Record of Receipts and Disbursements. — A supervisor is 
authorized by law to purchase, at the expense of the town, a blank- 
book in which he shall make a record of school moneys received or 

40 



DUTIES OF SUPERVISORS, ETC. 4I 

paid out, stating from whom and for what purposes they were 
received, and to whom and for what purposes they were paid. 
This record should be deHvered to his successor in office. 

Filing Statement of Accounts. — Within fifteen days after the 
term of office of a supervisor expires he should make a correct 
statement of the school moneys received and disbursed by him, and 
should file such statement or report in the town clerk's office, and 
should notify his successor in office that he has made and filed such 
report. 

To Obtain Funds from Predecessors. — When a supervisor has 
given the bond required by law to the county treasurer, he should 
take a certificate or statement from the county treasurer showing 
that such bond has been given. He should also obtain from the 
town clerk a copy of his predecessor's report. He should then 
present to his predecessor in office such copy and the certificate of 
the county treasurer showing that he has executed the required 
bond, and should demand all school moneys in the hands of such 
predecessor in office, which money should be paid upon such demand. 

Recovery of Penalties and Forfeiture. — It is the duty of the 
supervisor, when such duty is not imposed upon other officers by 
provisions of law, to sue for and recover all penalties and forfeit- 
ures provided for by the education law. After deducting his 
expenses he should report the balance to the district superintendent. 

Formation and Alteration of School Districts. — When re- 
quested to do so, a supervisor may act as. a member of the local 
board to consider the wisdom of forming new school districts or 
changing the boundaries of districts already formed. He cannot 
act in this capacity unless properly requested, and cannot be com- 
pelled to act when requested. In such matters he may act at his 
own discretion. 

For this service supervisors are entitled to $1.50 per day, which 
is a charge upon their respective towns. 

Fix Valuation of Property. — The supervisors of the towns in 
which a school district is located shall, when properly requested to 
do so, determine whether the assessments made upon certain prop- 
erty in such towns are equitable when compared with each other. 
If in any case they find that the assessments are not equitable they 
may determine the relative proportion of taxes that ought to be 
assessed, and if they are unable to agree upon this, they may call 
a supervisor from an adjoining town, and a majority shall have 



42 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

power to determine such proportion. The township law specifically 
continues this provision of law. For this service supervisors are 
entitled to three dollars per day, which shall be a charge upon their 
respective towns. (See chapter on " Taxes.") 

Fees for Paying Out School Money. — The Legislature of 1904 
amended the town law by providing certain fees to be paid a super- 
visor for services and including the paying out of school moneys. 
A supervisor is entitled to a fee of one per-centum on all school 
moneys paid out in accordance with the provisions of the education 
law. He is not entitled to such fee on any money paid his successor 
in office. 

TOWN CLERKS 
[Article 12] 

Preserve Records. — It is the duty of a town clerk to preserve 
carefully all books, papers, and records deposited or filed in his 
office and relating to the schools of the town of which he is clerk. 
Any loss or injury to such documents should be reported immedi- 
ately to the supervisor of the town. 

Record of Apportionment. — Each supervisor deposits with the 
town clerk the certificate of apportionment for his town, which 
certificate he should record in a book provided for that purpose. 
He should also immediately notify boards of education nhat the 
supervisor has filed such certificate. 

Obtain Reports of Trustees. — It is the duty of the town clerk 
to see that all trustees within his town file in his office an annual 
report as required by law. Such reports are to be delivered by the, 
town clerk to the district superintendent upon his demand. 

Record of Annual Accounts. — He should record the annual 
account of receipts and disbursements of school moneys made to 
him by the supervisor and should also record the action taken by 
the town auditors on such account and on the vouchers accompany- 
ing it. When the Commissioner of Education requires it, he should 
furnish him a copy of such account. 

Final Accounts. — A town clerk should record in the same book 
in which he records the annual accounting of a supervisor, the final 
accounting of school moneys by the supervisor, and he should deliver 
a copy of such final accounting to the supervisor's successor. 

Filing Treasurer's Certificate. — A town clerk should receive 
and record, from an outgoing supervisor, the certificate of the 



I 



DUTIES OF SUPERVISORS, ETC. 43 

county treasurer showing that the bond of such supervisor's suc- 
cessor has been executed and approved. 

Records of Districts. — He should receive, file, and record all 
descriptions of school districts and their alterations and all other 
papers and proceedings relating to school matters which are delivered 
to him by the district superintendent. 

Assist in Formation of Districts. — A town clerk may become 
a member of a local board to pass upon an order issued by a district 
superintendent to change the boundaries of a school district or to 
form a new district. He may act in this capacity when requested 
to do so by the board of education in his town, but not otherwise. 
He may act at his pleasure in regard to attending the meeting of a 
local board for this purpose, but he cannot be compelled to attend. 
The law leaves his attendance optional. For service in this capacity 
a town clerk is entitled to $1.50 per day, which is a charge upon his 
town. 

Preserve Records of Dissolved Districts. — A town clerk should 
receive and preserve all books, papers, and records of a dissolved 
school district that are deposited in his office as the law directs. 

File Bond of Collector. — A town clerk should receive and file 
a bond given by a collector of a union free school district in his 
town which has a population of fifteen hundred or more, and enter 
memorandum of the same in proper book. The town clerk should 
also receive and file the bond given by a town collector for the 
collection of school taxes. He is entitled to a fee of twenty-five 
cents for every such bond filed. (Sec. 252.) 

Payment and Expenses. — For any service performed by a 
town clerk in discharging the duties above mentioned, for which 
no fee is provided by law, he is entitled to the same compensation 
that he would receive for performing similar services for the town, 
and it should be audited by the town board as a charge upon the 
town. All disbursements in postage, express charges, etc., are a 
charge upon the town also. 

\ COUNTY TREASURER 

Annual Report to Commissioner of Education. — On the first 
of October of each year, a county treasurer should report to the 
Commissioner of Education the amount of money received by him 



44 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

from the academic and library funds, the amount paid to each city, 
school district and academy and the amount in his hands, if any, 
unclaimed by any such city, district or academy. 

Require Bonds of Supervisor. — As soon as the county treas- 
urer receives the district superintendent's certificate of apportion- 
ment, he should require the supervisor of each town in' his county 
to execute a bond with two or more sureties in double the amount 
of school money to be respectively paid to each of such supervisors. 
Whenever a vacancy occurs in the office of supervisor and such ' 
vacancy is supplied, the person chosen to fill such vacancy should be 
required by the county treasurer to give a bond in like manner as 
supervisors regularly elected, in double the amount of school moneys 
in the hands of the former supervisor. 

Should Sue Bond. — If the condition of the bond of any super- 
visor should be broken, the county treasurer should sue the bond 
in behalf of the town and pay the money recovered to the successor 
of the defaulting supervisor. 

Payment of School Moneys. — After a supervisor has given a 
bond approved by the county treasurer, such treasurer should pay 
such supervisor the amount of school money shown to be payable to 
him by the superintendent's certificate of apportionment. 

Payment of Unpaid Taxes. — Whenever a collector is unable 
to collect the school-district tax upon any real estate and the matter 
is properly presented to the county treasurer, it is his duty to pay 
such tax from the contingent fund and to report the facts to the 
board of, supervisors of the county. (See chapter 15.) 

DISTRICT ATTORNEY 

Fines from Prosecutions. — The district attorney should prose- 
cute all persons guilty of misdemeanors in relation to school affairs, 
as required by law, and should report annually to the board of 
supervisors all fines collected as the result of such prosecution, and 
all such money received by him should be immediately paid to the 
county treasurer. (Sec. 851.) 

Adjust Costs. — When the amount claimed by a board of educa- 
tion or other school officers for defending actions and proceedings 
in behalf of a district is disputed by such district and the county 
judge is debarred from acting, such claim, when presented in due 
form, must be adjusted by the district attorney. 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 45 

COUNTY JUDGE 

Appoint District Superintendent of Schools. — When a board 
of school directors fail to elect a district superintendent of schools 
and a vacancy exists in such office the county judge appoints a 
superintendent. (Sec. 383.) 

Adjust Costs. — When the officers of a school district or town 
have brought or defended an action or proceeding in behalf of such 
district hy instruction, and the amount claimed by such officers for 
costs and expenses is in dispute, and when such officers have brought 
or defended an action or proceeding in behalf of a district zvithout 
instruction, and the district meeting or town school meeting refuses 
to allow the claim presented by such officers for costs and expenses 
and the matter is properly presented to the county judge, he should 
give a hearing, examine into the facts of the case, and decide what 
amount should be allowed such officers, if any. A county judge 
cannot adjust a claim for costs and expenses incurred in bringing or 
defending appeals before the Commissioner of Education, but only 
in an " action or proceeding," in court. (Sec. 860; 31 Misc. 590.) 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

Of what school property are supervisors trustees? What annual return of 
school moneys must supervisors make? When and to whom is such return 
made? When may supervisors pay out such moneys after a return has been 
made? Upon whose order should a supervisor pay the money in his hands 
for the payment of teachers* wages? When should a supervisor pay to a 
collector or treasurer of a union free school district the money due their 
district for teachers' wages? What disposition should a supervisor make of 
the money in his hands, for teachers' wages and library purposes, belonging 
to union free school districts ? To whom should the supervisor make a report 
of the school moneys received and disbursed by him? What record of 
moneys should a supervisor keep? What should he do with this record? 

What statement should a supervisor file in the town clerk's office? When? 
To whom should he send notice that such report has been filed? State what 
is necessary to qualify a supervisor to obtain funds from his predecessor in 
office. What is the duty of a supervisor relative to penalties and forfeiture 
under the consolidated school law? In what manner may a supervisor assist 
in the formation or alteration of school district boundaries? Has he 
authority to act if not requested to do so? Can he be compelled to act in 
such capacity? To what compensation are supervisors entitled for such 
service? When may supervisors determine upon the equitable assessment of 
property? When may the supervisor of an adjoining town assist in such 
matters? What compensation does he receive for this service? 



46 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

What is the general duty of a town clerk relative to preserving school 
district records? What record of a supervisor's certificate of apportionment 
should a town clerk make? What officers' reports must he obtain? What 
must he do with such reports? What is his duty in relation to records of 
annual accounts? Final accounts? Treasurers' certificate? Records of 
boundaries of districts ? When may he assist in forming a new school district 
or in changing the boundaries of a district? Can he act if not requested? 
Can he be compelled to act? What compensation does he receive? What 
is his duty in relation to records of dissolved districts? In filing bonds of 
treasurer or collector? To what compensation is he entitled? How is such 
compensation paid? 

When must a county treasurer report to a district superintendent? What 
must such report show? What is his duty in relation to requiring bonds of 
supervisors? When should he sue the bondsmen of a supervisor? When 
should he pay school moneys to supervisors ? When should he pay uncollected 
taxes on real estate to a school district collector? 

What is the duty of the district attorney in relation to fines and prose- 
cutions? In adjusting costs? 

When may a county judge appoint a district superintendent? When may 
he adjust costs of district officers defending an action or proceeding for or 
against the district? What amount may he allow? May he adjust costs 
incurred in an appeal to the Commissioner of Education in an action or 
proceeding as defined by the Civil Code? 



CHAPTER VI 

SCHOOL DISTRICTS 
[Article 5] 

New Conditions. — The whole plan of administration of school 
districts has been modified by the provisions of the township law. 
These districts no longer exist as administrative school units. They 
are succeeded by the town school unit, which in most cases is that 
portion of the township outside of union free school districts having 
a population of fifteen hundred or more. Each school district, 
however, is continued as it existed on May 2, 19 17, the date when 
the township law became effective. The boundaries of a school 
district may not be changed except as provided in that law, which 
requires a vote of the inhabitants of the district in favor of the 
proposed change. School districts are continued for the sole pur- 
pose of fixing definite divisions of territory in which a school shall 
be maintained. The whole method of changing boundaries of a 
school district, dissolving districts, consolidating districts and erect- 
ing new districts has been changed under the township law. The 
provisions of that law must be applied in any action intended to 
modify the boundaries of school districts. 

Number of Districts. — For the school year ending July 31, 
1916, the number of school districts in the State, not including 
cities, was 10,498. The number differs from year to year as new 
districts are formed and others abolished. 

Origin of District System. — The school act of 1795 provided 
that the inhabitants of a town might associate together for the 
purpose of establishing and maintaining schools. Schools were 
maintained under this plan until 1812, when the law was changed 
by the school act of that year providing that the town commissioners 
should divide their respective towns into a suitable and convenient 
number of districts which should be numbered. The act providing 
for union free schools was passed in 1853, ^^^ was incorporated 
into the Consolidated School Act of 1864. The object was to 
create strong schools by uniting weak ones, thus bringing more 

47 



48 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

pupils and property to the support of a single school and make such 
schools free to all the children living in them. The school district 
as a unit of administration was abolished by chapter 328, Laws of 
1917. 

Division of Territory. — The law provides that all territory of 
the State must be divided and included in school districts. If there 
is territory in a supervisory district not included in some school 
district, it is the duty of the district superintendent having juris- 
diction, to divide such territory and order that it be included in the 
school districts to which it properly belongs. 

School District. — A school district is the smallest subdivision 
of a town in which a school is maintained. 

Classes of Districts. — Under the education law school districts 
are known as union-free school districts and common-school 
districts. 

Union Free-School Districts. — Union free-school districts are 
the districts organized as such under the provisions of the education 
law, or under special acts of the State Legislature. These districts 
have a board of education and are usually organized in the villages 
and cities of the State. » 

Common-School Districts. — All school districts in the State 
which are not organized as union-free school districts are common- 
school districts. 

Joint Districts. — Joint districts are school districts lying in 
two or more supervisory districts or in two or more towns. These 
districts are either common-school districts or union free-school 
districts. Joint districts must bear the same number in each town. 

Public School, — A public school is a school that is free and 
accessible to all the children of school age residing in a district or 
city, and supported by public taxation. Common schools and union 
free schools are public schools. It may also be said that all public 
schools are common schools. 

Farm School. — The board of supervisors in a county, outside 
of the city of New York, may organize a farm school for the pur- 
pose of giving instruction' in the trades and in industrial, agricul- 
tural and home-making subjects. The cost of maintenance is a 
county charge. (For details of the statute, see Laws of 1915, 
Ch. 307.) 

Camp Schools, — The law now authorizes the maintenance of 
camp schools to afford educational facilities for the children oi 



SCHOOL DISTRICTS 49 

laborers who may be employed in large construction works, such as 
reservoirs, public highways, power plants, etc. These are special 
schools, and the details of the law are not given here, but may be 
found by consulting Chapter 21, Laws of 1913. 

School Year. — The school year begins on the first day of 
August and ends of the thirty-first day of July following. 

Who May Attend School. — All persons over five and under 
•twenty-one years of age are entitled to attend the public school of 
the school district or city in which such persons reside, the full 
period for ^hich such public school is in session, without payment 
therefor. Such has been the law since the passage of the free 
school act in 1867. (Sec. 567.) Children over four years of age 
are entitled to attend a kindergarten maintained in the district in 
which such children reside, without charge. (Sec. 311.) 

Attendance of Non-resident Pupils. — Non-resident pupils may 
upon the written consent of the board of education of a town be 
admitted to a public school in such town. The board determines 
the conditions upon which non-resident pupils are admitted and the 
amount of tuition which must be paid. Whenever the parents or 
guardians of non-resident pupils are taxed on property owned by 
them and located in the town in which such non-resident pupils 
attend a public school, the amount of such tax paid must be deducted 
from the tuition charged. (Sec. 567.) The township law confers 
on boards of education the power to transfer pupils to a school in 
an adjoining town, district or city. The law regulating such mat- 
ter is treated fully under Powers of Town Board of Education. 

Attendance of Indian Pupils. — When a school district con- 
tains an Indian reservation on which a school for Indian children 
is maintained, the Indian children of such reservation are not enti- 
tled to the school privileges of the district in which such reservation 
is located and cannot be legally admitted to the public district school 
without the consent of the Commissioner of Education. (Sec. 943.) 

Description of Districts. — There should be on file in the town 
clerk's office, a complete description in metes and bounds of each 
school district of his town. The districts of a town should also be 
numbered consecutively. In a town in which twelve school districts 
are located, such districts should be numbered from one to twelve, 
inclusive. If any of the districts of such town should be abolished, 
the districts should be renumbered by the district superintendent so 
as to make the numbers consecutive. For example, if district No. 8 

4 



so NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

should be abolished, No. 12 should be changed to 8, and the districts 
would then be numbered from i to 11, inclusive. 

Formation and Dissolution of Joint Districts. — When the best 
interests of public education will thus be conserved, a school district 
may be formed from the territory of two or more supervisory dis- 
tricts by the joint action of the district superintendents having 
jurisdiction or a majority of them. 

A joint district may also be dissolved. This requires, however, 
the joint action of the superintendents of the supervisory districts 
in which such joint district is located. The dissolution of a school 
district contemplates the annexation or consolidation of its terri- 
tory to another district. The provisions of the township law relat- 
ing to consolidation of school districts which is treated later in this 
chapter apply to joint districts. 

Alteration of Boundaries of a Union Free-School District.— 
A district superintendent has the authority to alter the boundaries 
of a union free-school district which is not under the township law 
and whose limits do not correspond to those of an incorporated 
village in the same manner that common school districts are altered. 
The consent of the Board of- Education of such union free-school 
district and the consent of the Board of Education of each other 
union free-school district or township unit, affected by the order, 
should be obtained, when possible. . Otherwise, notice must be 
given and a hearing held as in the case of the alteration of school 
district boundaries without consent as hereinafter explained. 
A district superintendent may alter the boundaries of a union free- 
school district having a population of five thousand or more and 
employing a superintendent of schools, provided the written approval 
of the Board of Education of such district and the written approval 
of the board of the other district or town unit affected thereby have 
been obtained. 

Dissolution of Union Free-School District. — When a meeting, 
regularly convened, organizes a union free-school district, such 
district cannot be dissolved within one year from the first Tuesday 
in August following the date on which it was organized. 

But any union free-school district which has been established 
for one year or more may be dissolved by a special meeting of the 
district with the approval of the district superintendent. A meet- 
ing for this purpose should be called by the Board of Education 
when an application therefor is presented to them, signed by at 



SCHOOL DISTRICTS 5 1 

least fifteen resident taxpayers of the district. This appHes of 
course to a union free-school district having a population of 1,500 
or more or employing fifteen teachers or more. 

Action of Meeting. — The vote of a district meeting on this 
question should be taken by recording the ayes and noes ; and to 
receive favorable action, the proposition to change from a union 
free-school to a common-school district must receive a two-thirds 
vote of the legal voter's present and voting on the question. When- 
ever the question fails to receive a majority vote, no further meet- 
ing for a similar purpose can be held within three years from the 
date of the meeting at which such vote was taken. 

Approval of District Superintendent. — Whenever a district 
takes favorable action upon the proposition, it is the duty of the 
Board of Education of such district to present to the district super- 
intendent having jurisdiction, certified copies of the call for and 
notice of such meeting and of the proceedings of the meeting. If 
the district superintendent approves the action of t^e district meet- 
ing, he should file a certificate to that effect with the Board of 
Education. But the change of such district to a common school 
district cannot go into effect until the day preceding the first 
Tuesday of August next following. 

Disapproval of District Superintendent. — If the district super- 
intendent having jurisdiction, should refuse to approve the action 
of a meeting in voting to change from a union free-school district 
to a common-school district, no meeting can be held in such district 
for a like purpose within three years from the date on which the 
meeting was held at which such vote was taken. 

Conditional Approval of District Superintendent. — A district 
superintendent may make his approval of "such proceedings upon 
the condition that the district which has been greatly benefited by^ 
consolidation in the way of buildings, improvements of site, etc., 
shall pay an equitable sum to each of the other districts into which 
the district will be divided. 

Division of Dissolved District. — The district superintendent 
having jurisdiction, has the authority to divide the territory of 
a union free-school district which has been dissolved as described 
in this chapter into common-school districts, and whenever a uijion 
free-school district which was established by the consolidation of 
two or more districts shall be dissolved, the district superintendent 



52 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

may divide such territory into districts to correspond, so far as 
practicable, to the districts which had been consoHdated. 

Transfer of Academies to Former Trustees. — When a district 
so dissolved shall contain an academy which was converted under 
the law into the academic department of the union free-school of 
such district, the Board of Education must transfer such academy 
to a majority of the surviving resident former trustees or stock- 
holders, upon their application. 

Disposition of Money on Hand. — Whenever a union free- 
school district shall be thus dissolved and there shall be any money 
in the hands of the treasurer of such district, such money should 
be equitably apportioned among the school districts into which the 
union free-school district has been divided, and should be paid over 
to the treasurer of the town or town school unit to which such 
district or districts belong. 

Notification of Commissioner of Education. — Whenever a 
meeting of a union free-school district has been duly convened 
and has voted to dissolve such district, and this action of the 
meeting has been approved by the district superintendent, copies of 
the call for and the notice of such meeting, and of its proceedings 
and their approval by the district superintendent, all duly certified 
by the Board of Education, should be forwarded to the Commis- 
sioner of Education. 

Appeal to Commissioner of Education. — Any person feeling 
aggrieved by the action taken in any of the proceedings in such 
cases, may briUg an appeal to the Commissioner of Education, 
who has power to decide the matter and his decision is final. 

Outstanding Moneys of Dissolved Districts.— i- The supervisor 
of the town within which the schoolhouse of a dissolved district 
is situated has authority to receive, sue for, and collect, in his name 
of office, any money due the district from its former officers or 
from any other person. 

Adjustment of Affairs of Dissolved Districts.— After a district 
has been dissolved it continues to exist in law for the purpose of 
providing for and paying alh, its just debts. For this purpose its 
trustees and other officers continue in office ; the district may hold 
spetial meetings, elect officers to fill vacancies, and vote taxes ; and 
the inhabitants of the district and its officers may transact any other 
business necessary for the adjustment of such debts. 



SCHOOL DISTRICTS 53 

Records of Dissolved Districts. — The district superintendent, 
or if a joint district, the superintendents, should direct the clerk 
or other person who may be in possession of all books, papers, 
and records of the district to deposit such books, papers, and 
records in the town clerk's office of the town in which the school- 
house of such dissolved district was located. The superintendent 
should file a copy of the order served on the district clerk or other 
person with the town clerk. 

A failure on the part of a district clerk or any other person 
to comply with the order of a superintendent in this matter is 
punishable by a fine of $50. 

Methods of Alteration. — In altering the boundaries of any 
school district there are two methods of procedure. One is with 
the consent of the trustees of the districts affected, the other is 
without the consent of such trustees. 

It is impossible to change the boundaries of one district with- 
out changing the boundaries of at least one other. If territory is 
taken from one district it must be added to another. There will, 
therefore, always be at least two districts affected when a question 
of alteration of boundaries is involved. 

Action With Consent of Trustees. — A district superintendent 
should, if possible, obtain the consent of the town Board of Edu- 
cation when he decides to alter the boundaries of a district. This 
consent should be in writing and should state definitely what changes 
are to be made. When two towns or town school units will be 
affected by the order the consent of the board of each town should 
be obtained. A description of the districts as they shall be after 
the proposed changes are made should be incorporated in the writ- 
ten consent of such board. The Commissioner of Education has 
held that a majority vote of a town board at a meeting regularly 
called shall be considered the action of such board. The consent 
of the town board having been obtained, the superintendent may issue 
an order making the alterations, and must file a copy thereof with 
the town clerk of the town in which such districts are located, and 
if such districts are located in two or more towns, a copy must be 
filed with the town clerk of each of such towns. A copy should 
also be filed with the clerk of the board of education of the town 
or towns in which the di'stricts are located. The order should state 
definitely what changes are to be made and must recite that the 



54 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

consent of the town board has been given. These consents should 
be attached to and form a part of the order of the superintendent. 

The Com'missioner of Education has held. that a member of a 
board of education cannot consent 40 transfer his own land from 
one school district to another. 

Action Without Consent of Board. — ^This procedure is more 
complicated than the former. When a town board refuses to con- 
sent to the proposed alteration the superintendent must follow out 
each step provided by statute. He may make the order and file it 
with the town clerk of the town in which the districts are located, 
and a copy of such order with the clerk of the board of educa- 
tion. This order is known as the preliminary order, and must 
recite the refusal of the board of education to the consent of such 
prder and the superintendent must direct that the order shall not 
take effect within three months from the date thereof. 

Within ten days after filing such order the superintendent must 
give at least one week's notice in writing to the board of educa- 
tion of the town in which the districts affected are located, that, 
at a specific time, and at a place in the town in which one of the 
districts to be affected is located, he will hear the objections which 
may be offered to the proposed alteration. 

This notice must state that an order of alteration has been issued, 
and a copy of such order must also be inserted in the notice. 

Local Board. — Upon the request in writing of the town board 
of education, the supervisor and town clerk of the town or towns 
in which the districts affected wholly or partly lie, may be associ- 
ated with the superintendent upon the hearing of objections to his 
preliminary order. No supervisor or town clerk can. act in this 
capacity who has not been requested to do so. And such super- 
visor and town clerk must prevent such request, with proof of 
service of the same, to the superintendent, at the time and place 
fixed for such hearing, to establish their jurisdiction to act. The 
supervisors and town clerks thus requested to act and the super- 
intendent, form the local hoard to hear and determine upon the 
merits of the objections offered to the proposed changes. If a 
superivsor or a town clerk should be associated with a local board 
without being requested by the town board of education, any decision 
of such local board determined by the votes of such supervisor or 



SCHOOL DISTRICTS 55 

town clerk should be declared void by the Commissioner of Edu- 
cation upon appeal to him in due form. 

Tpwn officers are not required by law to attend such meetings. 
Town boards of education are authorized to request them to attend ; 
but there is no authority to compel their attendance. If any of 
these officers who are entitled to act as members of a local board 
should fail to appear at the hearing, the superintendent and those 
supervisors and town clerks entitled to become members of the 
board, who do appear, may proceed with the hearing and render a 
decision thereon. If all supervisors and town clerks entitled to 
1, become members of such board should fail to appear at the hearing, 
the superintendent may proceed without them and decide on the 
merits of the objection? offered. 

But if the superintendent should not attend and if the town offi- 
cers should attend, they would not have the authority to proceed, 
and the preliminary order issued by the superintendent would become 
void. In a case of this kind proceedings could be renewed if 
desired. 

A local board has power to adjourn from time to time, but such 
adjournments cannot extend the date of the hearing beyond the 
time designated in the preliminary order when such order shall 
take effect. 

At the hearing before the local board those interested who are 
opposed to the order of the superintendent, may present their evi- 
dence and arguments against the wisdom of the proposed changes, 
and those, in favor may also present evidence and arguments in 
support thereof. 

After all evidence and arguments have been presented, the local 
board must decide by vote either to affirm or vacate the order of 
the superintendent. Each member of the local board is entitled 
to a vote, and a majority decides the action to be taken. If 
the local board decides to vacate the order of the district 
superintendent, the matter is ended and the changes cannot be 
made. An appeal from such decision may be taken to the Com- 
missioner of Education, who may affirm, modify, or vacate such 
order. A record of the action of the local board must be filed 
in the town clerk's office. 

If the local board votes to confirm the order of the superintend- 
ent, a final order must be made by the superintendent and members 
of such board, directing that the alterations be made. 



56 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

This final order must recite the first order and all the proceedings 
taken thereafter, including the action of the local board. 

Consolidation of School Districts.- — The whole plan of altering 
tjhe boundaries of school districts, dissolving such districts and the 
consolidation of districts has been modified by the provisions of the 
Township Law. While a district superintendent may change the 
boundaries of school districts, the cases, if any, in which such 
action is necessary are rare. If such cases do arise a district super- 
intendent must proceed in the manner provided before the adoption 
of the township system. There are, of course, no trustees of school 
districts who may give consent as required under the law to the 
alteration of the boundaries of a school district. Such consent must 
now be obtained from the town board of education. The law 
known as the Township Law requires each town board to perform 
any duties or obligations legally imposed upon the former officers 
known as school trustees. 

If it appears desirable to consolidate two or more districts in any 
town, the district superintendent having jurisdiction may take the 
initiative by issuing an order of consolidation. After the district 
superintendent issues such order, he must deliver a copy thereof 
to the town board of education for the consideration of that body. 
The town board of education may, at a regular or special meeting, 
consider such order and determine whether it should be approved or 
disapproved. If the town board disapproves such order, no further 
action may be taken in relation to the consolidation. If the town 
board of education approves such order, a meeting of the voters of 
the several districts affected by such order should be called. The 
town board of education should direct its clerk to give at least six 
days' notice of the time and place of such meeting to each of the 
voters residing in the school districts affected by such order. The 
meeting should be held at the most central and convenient place 
for the voters of the several districts. A record of those voting 
on the proposition should be made and such record should show the 
district in which each voter resides, and how each voter voted on 
the proposition. It is suggested that a separate record be made of 
the votes cast by residents of each district as this will aid in making 
a canvass after the polls have been closed. After all persons have 
voted who desire to vote, a canvass should be made of the votes 
cast. The order of consolidation does not become effective unless 
a majority of the votes cast in each district is in favor of such con- 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 57 

solidation. A district superintendent should not, therefore, include 
in an order of consolidation a district in which he knows the senti- 
ment to be opposed to consolidation. The unfavorable vote of one 
district would defeat the entire proposition. It is wise, therefore, 
to include in the order of consolidation those districts only in which 
it is known that public sentiment is in favor of the consolidation. 

After the proceedings afe completed, the district superintendent 
should file his original order, the original approval of the town 
board, the notice of the meeting at which the voters of the several 
districts voted on the confirmation of such order, and the record 
of the proceedings of such meeting, property certified, in the office 
of the clerk of the town. Copies of all such original papers should 
be filed in the office of the clerk of the board of education of the 
town, and also with the Commissioner of Education. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

What is the number of school districts in the State? What is the law in 
relation to the division of all territory in the State? What are the two classes 
of districts? When was the district system first inaugurated? How? What 
change was made in 1812? When were union free schools authorized? Define 
each. What is a pubhc school? What are the limits of a school year? Who 
are entitled to attend a public school? For what period may such persons 
attend? When was the free-school act passed? What is the law in relation 
to the apportionment of public money on the attendance of pupils over 18 
years of age? Who may attend a kindergarten? How may non-resident 
pupils be admitted to school? Who determines the conditions upon which 
they are admitted? What is the law in relation to charging such pupils' 
tuition? What is meant by transfer of pupils to another district? What is 
the law regulating the attendance of Indian pupils upon a public school? 

Where should a description of each school district be filed? What should 
be the character of this description? How should districts be numbered? 
When may a joint district be .dissolved? How? 

A. district superintendent may alter the boundaries of what union free- 
school districts? After a union free-school district has been organized what 
time must elapse before it can be dissolved? How may a union free-school 
district which has been established for more than one year be dissolved? 
How is such special meeting called? When should it be called? How should 
the vote on this question be taken? What vote is necessary in order to 
change to a common-school district? When a proposition to change from a 
union free-school district to a common-school district is defeated, what 
period of time must elapse before another meeting may be called to consider 
such proposition? What must be done with all papers in the proceedings 
when a union free-school district votes for a change? What should the 
superintendent do if he approves 'the change? When does the dissolution 



58 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

go into effect? If the superintendent fails to approve such action, when 
may another meeting for the same purpose be held? When may a super- 
intendent make his approval conditional? What is done with the territory 
of a union free-school district when such district has been dissolved? When 
a district is thus dissolved and it had contained an academy which was con- 
verted into an academic department of such union free-school district, what 
must the board of education do with such academy? What papers relating 
to such dissolution must be filed with the Contmissioner of Education? What 
appeal may be taken in these matters ? 

When two or more dissolved districts are consoHdated into a new district, 
what becomes of the property of such dissolved districts? What becomes 
of the property when such districts are attached to other districts? What 
notice of such sale must be given? How are the expenses of such sale met? 
What disposition is made of the remainder of such fund? 

How may the outstanding money of a dissolved district be collected? What 
is done with money thus collected? What is the duty of a district super- 
intendent in relation to such matters? What powers does a dissolved district 
posses as a district? What disposition should be made of the books, papers, 
and records of a dissolved district? Who should direct this? What is the 
penalty for failing to comply with this direction? What are the two methods 
by which a school district may be altered? If the boundaries of one district 
are changed, what must follow? In what form should trustees' consent be 
given? What is done after the consent of the trustees is given? What must 
be done with the superintendent's order? What facts should the order of 
the superintendent recite? With whom should copies of such order be filed? 
Can a trustee consent to transfer his own land from one district to another? 

By whom is a preliminary order issued to change the boundaries of a 
district when the trustees will not consent to such change? Where must 
such order be filed? What must it show? When must it take effect as to 
the dissenting districts? What notice must the superintendent give to the 
trustees dissenting to such changes? What must such notice contain? What 
officers may be associated with the superintendent at the hearing upon such 
order? Can these officers act if not requested by the trustees? What must 
these officers do to establish their jurisdiction to act? What would be the 
effect if either of these officers should act without being properly requested 
to do so? Can these officers be required to act in this capacity? If only 
part of the officers requested to act in this capacity should appear at the 
hearing, what should be done? If none of such officers requested should 
appear, could the superintendent legally act in their absence? If the super- 
intendent should fail to appear and the other officers should appear, what 
could be legally done? 

Can this board adjourn? For what period? What should be done at the 
hearing? What must be done with the records of the proceedings? If 
affirmative action is taken on the original order, what is the next step? 
What must the final order contain? Explain fully the method by which two 
or more school districts may be consolidated. 



CHAPTER VII 

DISTRICT MEETINGS 

[Article V] 

General Statement. — The only school districts w'hich hold 
district meetings are union free-school districts having a population 
of 1,500 or more or employing fifteen teachers or more. These 
union free school districts are not under the provisions of the 
township law and they continue to hold annual meetings as in for- 
mer years and under the same provision of law which such meetings 
have formerly been held. There is no legal authority for holding 
district meetings in any of the school districts under the township 
law, except to vote upon the consolidation of such district with 
another district when a meeting is called by the town board of 
education. 

ANNUAL MEETING 

Notice in Union Free-School District. — The clerk of a union 
free-school district who is the clerk of the board of education 
should give notice of the annual meeting by publishing the same in 
two newspapers in the district, once in each week during the four 
weeks next preceding the date of the annual meeting. If there are 
not two newspapers published in the district, then such notice should 
be printed in one paper. If no newspaper is published in such 
district, then such notice must be posted in at least twenty con- 
spicuous places for at least twenty days before the time of such 
meeting. 

Date. — The date fixed by law for the annual meeting of a 
union free-school district whose boundaries do not correspond to 
those of an incorporated village or a city, is the first Tuesday of 
May. The board of education of such district may adopt a reso* 
lution fixing the time of the annual meeting as the first Tuesday in 
August. 

In a union free-school district whose boundaries do coincide with 
the limits of an incorporated village or a city no annual meeting is 
held. The election of officers in such districts occurs at the charter 
election and the usual business of the district is transacted by the 
board of education. 

59 



6o NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

, Hour. — Unless a previous annual meeting has fixed some other- 
hour, the meeting should be held at 7:30 o'clock p. m. 

Place. — The annual meeting must be held in the schoolhouse 
of the district unless otherwise voted by the district. If the district 
has two schoolhouses, the meeting should be held in the one gen- 
erally used for that purpose. The trustees, however, may designate 
the other school building. A district may vote at an annual meeting 
or a special mefeting called for that purpose, that future meetings 
shall be held at some other place than the schoolhouse. If the 
district has no schoolhouse, the meeting must be held at some 
place designated by the trustees. 

Failure to Hold Annual Meeting. — If the date of the annual 
meeting has passed and such meeting has not been held in a certain 
district, the board of education or clerk of such district should call 
a special meeting to transact the business of the annual meeting. 
If the board of education or clerk of such district should fail to call 
such special meeting within ten days after the date fixed by law for 
holding the annual meeting, the district superintendent having 
jurisdiction over such district may order any resident of such school 
district to give notice that such meeting will be held. This notice 
must be given in the same manner as notices of special meetings. 

The district officers should make to such meeting the reports 
required to be made at annual meetings, A failure to make such 
reports subjects district officials to the same penalty that is imposed 
for a failure to report at annual meetings. Officers elected at such 
meeting are entided to serve until the date of the next annual meet- 
ing and until their successors have been elected and have qualified. 

Notice of Adjourned Meeting. — When any meeting of a dis- 
trict has been adjourned for more than one month, the clerk of 
the district must post notices of the time and place of such adjourned 
meeting in at least five of the most public places in such district 
and at least five days previous to the time appointed for such 
meeting. 

Legislative Body of District. — The , electors of a school dis- 
trict, when assembled in a meeting regularly convened, constitute 
the legislative body of such district and may transact any business 
relating to the school affairs of such district which is permissible 
by statute. As special meetings are called to transact special busi- 
ness, the annual meeting of a district is the one in which nearly all 
the business of a district is transacted. The more important mat- 



DISTRICT MEETINGS 6l 

ters coming before an annual meeting as provided by law are as 
follows : 
Powers and Duties of Annual Meetings: 

1. To select a presiding officer, to be known as chairman, and in 
the absence of the district clerk to select a clerk pro tempore. 

2. To elect members of the board of education in the place of 
those whose terms of office expires. 

3. To vote a tax upon the taxable property of the district, to 
purchase, lease and improve school sites or an addition to such sites 
and grounds, to hire or purchase rooms or buildings for school- 
rooms or schoolhouses, or to build schoolhouses ; to keep in repair 
and furnish the same with necessary fuel, furniture and appur- 
tenances, and to purchase such implements, apparatus and supplies 
as may be necessary to provide instruction in agriculture and other 
subjects, and for the organization and conduct of athletic, play- 
ground and other social center worjk. A schoolhouse site can only 
be designated at a special district meeting called for that purpose. 

4. To vote a tax for the establishment, maintenance, support, and 
increase of a school library, and to purchase a bookcase. 

5. To vote a tax to supply a deficiency caused by a failure to 
collect a former tax, also for the purpose of providing a record 
book for the district. 

6. When district officers have lost or embezzled any of the funds 
of a district, the annual meeting may vote a tax upon the district 
to replace such funds. 

7. The annual meeting may also vote a tax upon the district to 
meet the expenses incurred by the district officers in defending suits 
or appeals in the district's behalf and also in prosecuting suits or 
appeals in its behalf, when directed. 

8. The district may also vote a tax to pay teachers' wages as 
they become due, and to pay any judgment obtained from a com- 
petent court by a teacher for teacher's salaries. 

9. An annual meeting may direct the trustees of a district to 
insure in any insurance company created under the laws of this 
State, or authorized to do business in the State, the school buildings, 
furniture, apparatus, etc. 

10. A majority of the voters of any school district, present at 
any annual or special district meeting, duly convened, may authorize 
such acts and vote such taxes as they shall deem expedient for mak- 
ing additions, alterations, repairs- or improvements, to the sites or 



62 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

buildings belonging to the district, or for the purchase of other 
sites or buildings, or for a change of sites, or for the purchase of 
land and buildings for agricultural, athletic, playground or social 
center purposes, or for the erection of new buildings, or for buying 
apparatus, implements, or fixtures, or for paying the wages of 
teachers, and the necessary expenses of the school, or for such other 
purpose relating to the support and welfare of the school as they 
tnay, by resolution, approve. But no addition to or change of site 
or purchase of a new site or tax for the purchase of any new site or 
structure, or for the purchase of an addition to the site of any 
schoolhouse, or for the purchase of lands and buildings' for agri- 
cultural, athletic, playground or social center purposes, or for build- 
ing any new schoolhouse or for the erection of an addition to any 
schoolhouse already built, shall be voted at any such meeting in a 
union free-school district unless a notice by the board of education 
stating that such tax will be proposed, and specifying the object 
thereof and the amount to be expanded therefor, shall have been 
given in the manner provided herein for the notice of an annual 
meeting. 

Method of Voting. — All questions involving the expenditure 
of money or the levying of a tax upon a district must be by ballot, 
or by taking and recording the ayes and noes of the voters present 
and voting. 

SPECIAL MEETING 

Notice of Special Meeting in Union Free-School District. — 

The notice of all special meetings should be given by the Board 
of Education and in the same manner that notice of annual meet- 
ings is given. The notice of such meetings may be signed by the 
president and the clerk of the board, but this must be done under 
the direction of the board. The notice should state explicitly when 
and where the meeting will be held and the purpose for which it is 
called. 

Penalty for Refusing to Serve Notice. — Any taxable inhabi- 
tant of a district who refuses to serve a notice of special meeting 
when legally requested forfeits the sum of $5 for the benefit of 
the district. 

Pow^er of District Superintendent to Call Special Meetings.— 
A district superintendent may call and give notice of special district 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 63 

meetings for any school district under his jurisdiction when the 
offices of clerk and all trustees for such district are vacant. 

Failure to Notify All Voters. — If the failure to notify all 
voters of a district meeting can be shown to be wilful and fraudu- 
lent, the proceedings will be declared illegal upon appeal in proper 
form to the Commissioner of Education. If such omission of 
notice appears accidental or if the presence of the person failing to 
receive such notice would not change the result of the action of such 
meeting, or if such person attended the meeting, the proceedings 
will be declared legal. All matters of this character in dispute 
should be presented to the Commissioner of Education in the form 
of appeals. 

Powers of Special Meetings.— The only business which can 
be considered at a special meeting is that for which the meeting 
was called and which was designated in the notice of such meeting. 

The. only purpose for which a special meeting in a union free- 
school district whose boundaries are the same as those of an incor- 
porated village may be held, are for the authorization of improve- 
ments to school property as provided in section 467 and the issuance 
of bonds therefor, or such other purpose as the charter or special 
act of a district whose boundaries are coincident with the boundaries 
of an incorporated village may particularly specify. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS. 

In what distritts are meetings held? In what ones are they not held? 
What notice must be given of an annual meeting in a union free-school dis- 
trict? Does a failure to give such notice invalidate a meeting? When does 
the annual meeting occur? At what hour? At what place? May it be held 
elsewhere? When? If the annual meeting is not held on the date fixed by 
law, what should be done? What business should be transacted at the meet- 
ing when called? For what period do the officers elected at such meeting 
serve? What notice must be given of a meeting adjourned for more than 
one month? What is the legislative body of a school district? What power 
has an annual meeting in relation to selecting a chairman? A clerk pro 
tempore f District officers? Name the various purposes for which a district 
meeting may vote a tax? What direction should an annual meeting give 
trustees in relation to the insurance of property? How must a vote involving 
expenditure of money be taken? What notice of a special meeting must be 
given? How is service made? What retumv should be made? What is the 
penalty for refusing to serve notices ? Wlien may district superintendent call 
special meeting? What is the effect of failure to notify all voters? What 
business may be transacted at a special meeting? What limitations are there 
to certain union free-school districts? 



CHAPTER VIII 

VOTERS AT TOWN SCHOOL AND UNION FREE-SCHOOL DISTRICT 
MEETINGS QUALIFICATIONS, CHALLENGES, ETC. 

[See Sections 203, 204 and 205] 

Note. — The qualifications of voters at town school and union 
free-school district meetings are the same. No distinction is made 
by law between the qualifications of voters in these two adminis- 
trative units or in the penalty for illegal voting therein. Under the 
provisions of the Education Law, there are four classes of persons 
entitled to vote at such meetings. These classes are clearly defined 
in a circular letter issued by the Education Department, as follows : 

Who Are Voters. — Four classes of persons are entitled to vote at school 
district meetings. All voters must have the following general qualifications : 

General Qualifications 

1. A citizen of the United States. ' 

2. Twenty-one years of age at least. 

3. A resident within the district for a period of at least thirty days next 
preceding the meeting at which he or she offers to vote. 

Any person who possesses the above general qualifications and any one of 
the four special qualification is entitled to vote: 

Special Qualifications 

1. One who owns or hires, or is in the possession under a contract of 
purchase of real property in such district liable to taxation for school pur- 
poses. 

2. One who is the parent of a child of school age, provided such child shall 
have attended the school in the district or town in which the meeting is held 
for a period of at least eight weeks within the school year preceding such 
school meeting. 

3. One who, not being the parent, has permanently residing with him or 
her a child of school age who shall have attended the school in the district 
or town for a period of at least eight weeks within the school year preceding 
such meeting. 

4. One who owns any personal property assessed on the last preceding 
assessment roll of the town exceeding fifty dollars in value, exclusive of such 
as is exempt from execution. 

Women possessing any of the above qualifications are entitled to vote. 
Both parents are entitled to vote when they have a child or children who 

64 



VOTERS AT SCHOOL DISTRICT MEETINGS 65 

attended school in the district or town eight weeks during the year preceding 
such meeting. 

But one such person, however, can vote where the right to vote depends 
upon their having children not their own residing with them, and that person 
must be the head of the family. 

Residence. — A person to obtain a voting residence in a school 
district or tow^n must actually reside in such district or town for a 
period of at least thirty days immediately preceding any annual or 
special meeting at which such person desires to vote. 

Challenge of Voter. — No person can take part in the transac- 
tion of any business of a union free-school district meeting or a town 
school meeting who is not a legal voter at such meeting. The right 
of any person to vote at a school meeting cannot be questioned or 
challenged by any person except a duly qualified voter. When a 
person offering to vote at a school meeting is challenged by a quali- 
fied voter, the chairman of such meeting should require the person 
thus challenged to make the following declaration : " I do declare 
and affirm that I am and -have been for the thirty days last past 
an actual resident of this school district (or town) and that I am 
qualified to vote at this meeting." Any person who shall make such 
declaration is entitled to vote upon all propositions which arise at 
such meeting. A person thus challenged who refuses to make such 
declaration should not be permitted to vote upon any question before 
the meeting. Neither the people in attendance upon a meeting nor 
the officers of such meeting have authority to pass upon the qualifi- 
cations of any voter. Even if the officers of such meeting know 
the declaration made by a person challenged to be false, they can- 
not refuse to accept his vote. The proper course to pursue is to 
accept such vote, and proceed against the offender as the law 
provides. 

Penalty for Illegal Voting. — A person who has been challenged 
at any school meeting and who willfully makes a false declaration 
of his or her right to vote at such meeting is guilty of a misde- 
meanor which is punishable by fine or imprisonment or both. 

A person voting at a school meeting held in a union free-school 
district or a town who has not been challenged and who is not a 
qualified voter at such meeting, forfeits the sum of ten dollars, 
which should be sued for by the supervisor of the town for the 
benefit of the district or town. 
5 



(36 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Under the Penal Law a person not qualified who knowingly votes 
or offers to vote, or who makes a false declaration when challenged 
at a school meeting is guilty of a misdemeanor. 

Decisions of Education Department. — The follov^ing rulings 
have been judicially established, which govern questions at the 
present time involving these points of law : 

1. An alien is not a legal voter at a school meeting, although he 
may reside in the school district or town, own lands therein, or have 
children of school age residing with him who attend school in the 
dfstrict or town. 

2. The proceedings of a district or town meeting carried by illegal 
votes will be set aside on appeal to the Commissioner of Education. 

3. When the illegal votes cast at a school meeting would not 
change the result of any of the proceedings of such meeting, the 
proceedings will not be set aside. 

4. The chairman of a school meeting is entitled to vote upon all 
questions coming before the meeting for determination. 

5. The chairman of a school meeting is not entitled to cast the 
deciding vote in case of a tie, if he has already voted on the question', 

6. A man is not entitled to vote on account of the qualifications' 
of his wife, nor is a woman entitled to vote upon the qualifications 
of her husband. 

7. The law does not declare the amount of real estate which a 
person must own or rent to entitle such person to vote at a school 
district meeting. 

8. The residence of a person must be bona fide to entitle such 
person to vote at a district meeting. 

9. Prima facie, the place where a person lives is deemed his 
residence. 

10. Where a person removes from one place to another with an 
intention of m,aking the latter his permanent residence, that place 
injmediately becomes his residence. 

11. No person can vote upon any proposition before a school 
meeting who is not a qualified voter. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

Is there a difiference between the qualifications of voters In union free- 
school districts and in towns? Is there in the penalty for illegal voting? 
Into how many classes may the voters be arranged? What are the qualifi- 
cations of the first class? Second class? Third class? Fourth class? Can 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 67 

a person vote at a school meeting if such person is not a resident of the 
district or town for which the meeting is held? State each of the four 
qualifications which a voter must possess. Can women possessing any of 
the four qualifications vote? Which of these ^our qualifications apply 
to married people? Which to single people? Who may vote on the 
qualifications of the second class, father or mother? Explain who are 
entitled to vote on the qualifications of the third class? What is a "resi- 
dence? " 

Who may challenge the right of a person to vote at a school meeting? 
Wht declaration must a person challenged make? Wht is the effect of a 
challenged person's making such declaration? A refusal to make such 
declaration? Can the officers of a school meeting pass upon the qualifications 
of a voter? Even if the officers know that a false declaration has been made, 
can they recuse to accept the vote of the person who made it? What course 
may be pursued in such case? What is the penalty for making a false 
declaration regarding the right to vote? What is the penalty for illegal 
voting at a school meeting when the voter has not been called upon to make 
a declaration? 

Can an alien vote at a school meeting if he possesses all other qualifications 
of voters? What action may be taken upon any proceedings of a school 
meeting carried by illegal votes? If the illegal votes cast do not affect the 
■ result of any proceedings, what is the ruling of the Commissioner of Edu- 
cation? Upon what questions may a chairman of a meeting vote? Can a 
chairman cast a deciding vote in case of a tie if he has already voted on the 
question? May a man vote on qualifications possessed by his wife? May a 
woman vote on the qualifications of her husband? 

Does the law fix the amount of real estate a person must own or rent to 
qualify him to vote? Explain the rulings of the Commissioner of Education 
as given in numbers 8, 9, and 10 of this chapter. 



CHAPTER IX 

SITES, SCHOOL BUILDINGS, BONDS, ETC. 

[Articles XI-A and XVI] 

Sites in School Districts Under the Township Law. — In a 

school district which is under the provisions of the township law 
the town board has the power to designate new sites or to enlarge 
existing sites. Such new sites or an addition to an existing site 
may be designated by the adoption of a written resolution by the 
town board of education. This resolution must receive the affirma- 
tive vote of at least a majority of the members constituting the 
town board. The resolution must also show the reasons why such 
sites or addition to a site are necessary and the land which it is 
proposed to acquire for such purpose must be described in such 
resolution by metes and bounds and the resolution must also con- 
tain an estimate of the amount of funds necessary to purchase 
such land. After the adoption of such resolution the land rnay be 
acquired by the town board of education as the education law pro- 
vides real property may be acquired for school purposes. 

Sites in Certain Union Free-School Districts. — A site for a 
schoolhouse in a union free-school district not under the pro- 
visions of the township law can be designated at a special meeting 
of such district. A written resolution in which the proposed site 
is described by metes and bounds must be adopted by a majority 
vote of the qualified voters present and voting. The vote upon 
such resolution must be by taking and recording ayes and noes or 
by ballot. A record of such vote must be made, showing how each 
person voted upon the proposition. 

A district of this class, at a special meeting, may designate two 
or more sites with the approval of the district superintendent having 
jurisdiction. The' notice of such special meeting must state the 
proposed number of sites that will be voted upon. 

Improvement of Site. — The voters at such a union free-school 
district meeting may vote to improve the site or sites of such district 
or they may vote to enlarge such site Or sites. 

68 



SITES, SCHOOL BUILDINGS, BONDS, ETC. 69 

Tax for Site. — The voters of such a union free-school district 
may vote a tax to purchase, lease, and improve the sites of such 
district. This tax must be levied and assessed in the same manner 
as taxes for other school purposes. 

Change of Site. — The legal voters of such a union free-school 
district may by a majority vote at a special meeting called for that 
purpose, adopt a written resolution designating a new site and 
describing it by metes and bounds. The vote on such resolution 
must be by ballot or by taking and recording the ayes and noes. 

Disposition of Proceeds of Sale of Site. — The proceeds derived 
from the sale of such property must be applied on the expense of 
procuring a new site, of removing or erecting thereon a school-house, 
and of improving and furnishing the site, the school-house, and 
their appendages, so far as may be necessary. If a surplus should 
remain, it should be devoted to the purchase of school apparatus 
or used for any other support of the school, as the voters at an 
annual meeting may choose to direct. 

Designate Sites Without Vote of District. — In a union free- 
school district containing 5,000 or more inhabitants the board of 
education may without vote of the district designate a site or sites, 
or an addition to a site or sites. 

Acquisition of Sites. — Where the owners of land will not con- 
sent to the sale of such lands for sites for school buildings, su(^h 
lands may be acquired without their consent under the provisions of 
the Condemnation Law. •^ * 

The following property cannot be taken by this method without 
the consent of the owners : 

1. A homestead occupied as such by the owner. Except such 
portion thereof as may appear to the court to be unnecessary for 
the reasonable use and enjoyment thereof. 

2. A garden, orchard, or any part thereof, not within a city which 
has existed for a period of one year prior to the beginning of the 
condemnation proceedings. 

3. A yard or inclosure, or any part thereof, necessary to the use 
or enjoyment of buildings. 

4. Fixtures or erections for the purposes of trade or manufacture 
which have existed for a period of one year prior to the beginning 
of the condemnation proceedings. 

5. The whole of a city or village lot with the erections and 
improvements thereon. 



70 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Sale of Forxner Site. — Whenever the site of a schoolhouse is 
changed jn a union free-school district the legal voters of the district 
at a special or an annual meeting duly convened, may, by a majority 
vote, direct the sale of the former site and the buildings thereon at 
such price and terms as they deem proper. 

Transfer of Title. — The board of education, when so directed 
by a district meeting, may execute a deed transferring the interest 
and title of the district to such property^ and such deed is valid and 
binding. 

'Bond and Mortgage or Other Security. — Whenever a union 
free-scfiool district meeting directs that credit may be given to the 
purchaser of such property for any portion of the amount paid there- 
for, the board of education has authority to take in their corporate 
name security by bond and mortgage or otherwise, as they shall 
deem best. The board of education holds such security as a corpo- 
ration and should account therefor to their successors in office and 
to the district in the same manner as they are now required by law 
to account for moneys received by them. A board of education 
in its official capacity may sue for and recover the moneys due and 
unpaid upon any security so taken by them or their predecessors. 

School Buildings; Erection; Repeiir; etc., in Towns. 

1. A town board of education is required to provide for the repair 
of school buildings under its supervision and all other buildings 
under its control and management. It may expend for this purpose 
an amount not in excess of the amount included in the annual school 
tax budget. 

2. A town board of education may also remodel or enlarge school 
buildings or other buildings under its control and supervision, and it 
may also construct new buildings whenever the proper accommoda- 
tion of the school children of the town requires such additional 
school facilities. 

3. A town board of education shall not expend in any one year 
for the remodeling, or enlarging, of existing school buildings, or 
for the construction of new buildings, an aggregate amount in 
excess of one-half of one per cent of the assessed valuation of the 
town, and in no case shall the amount for this purpose in the aggre- 
gate be in excess of five thousand dollars, unless such excess amount 
has been authorized by a vote of the qualified electors at a town 
school meeting. The amount which a board is authorized to expend 
for the ordinary repair of school buildings as outlined in para- 



SITES, SCHOOL BUILDINGS, BONDS, ETC. 7I 

graph I is not included in the limitation imposed upon a board of 
education for remodeling, improving or enlarging existing buildings, 
or constructing new buildings. In other words a board of education 
might expend an amount equal to one-half of one per cent of the 
assessed valuation of the town for a new building or for remodel- 
ing, enlarging and improving an existing building and in addition 
thereto such board might expend any reasonable amount for the 
ordinary repair of school buildings. 

4. When a board of education deems it necessary to expend an 
amount in excess of the limitation expressed in the above paragraph 
such board should submit a proposition therefor to a vote cif the 
qualified voters of the town at either an annual town school meeting 
or a special town school meeting. 

Condemnation of School-house. — When a district superintend- 
ent has condemned a school building in a town as unsatisfactory for 
use and not worth repairing and has expressed in the order of 
condemnation an amount necessary to erect a new building in excess 
of the sum of five thousand dollars, it is the duty of the board of 
education to call a special meeting of the electors of the town and 
submit to them the proposition for the construction of a new build- 
ing at an expense specified in the order of condemnation of the 
district superintendent. If the electors of the town authorize such 
expenditure it is the duty of the board of education to proceed 
with the erection of such building as directed at the district meet- 
ing. If the meeting has authorized a tax to be raised by installment 
for th? erection of such building the board of education may issue 
school bonds as provided in the education law. 

If the electors do not authorize such appropriation at the town 
meeting it then becomes the duty of the board of education to 
proceed to erect such building and to include in its tax budget the 
amount specified in the order of the district superintendent as 
necessary for the erection of such building. A board of education 
may in its discretion reduce the amount of such appropriation by 
twenty-five per cenji. 

When a district superintendent has condemned a school building 
and has expressed in the order of condemnation an amount less than 
five thousand dollars as necessary for the erection of a suitable 
building, the board of education need not submit the question of 
an appropriation to the voters of the district. The board of educa- 
tion has the authority to include the amount necessary in such case 



73 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

for the erection of the school building in its tax budget without 
a vote at a town meeting authorizing such expenditure. 

Although a board of education possesses the power to include 
in the tax budget an amount less than five thousand dollars for the 
erection of a new school building, without a vote of the electors of 
the town' such board may in its discretion submit to the voters of 
the town at either an annual or special school meeting the propo- 
sition involving an expenditure for the erection of a new building, 
the repairing, remodeling, improving or enlarging of an existing 
building, the purchase of a new site or of an addition to an existing 
site, when the expenditure therefor is not less than one thousand 
dollars. 

5. When the voters at a town school meeting have authorized 
an expenditure for the erection of a school building or the repair- 
ing, improving or enlarging of a school building it is within the 
power of .such voters to determine whether the expense incurred 
thereby shall be met in one tax levy or by installments. 

Condemnation of Schoolhouse in Certain Union Free-School 
Districts. — When in the judgment of a district superintendent 
the schoolhouse of a union free-school district not subject to the 
provisions of the township law, is wholly unfit for use and not 
worth repairing, he may issue an order condemning such property 
and he should fix a time therein when such order shall go into 
effect. The superintendent should also direct in such order the 
expenditure of an amount which in his judgment is necessary to 
erect a schoolhouse for the accommodation of the children of such 
district. 

Service of Order. — The superintendent must immediately serve 
such order upon the board of education of the district and transmit 
a copy thereof to the Commissioner of Education. 

Board Should Call Special Meeting. — Immediately upon being 
served with a copy of such order, the board of education should 
call a special meeting of the district for the purpose of considering 
the question of building a schoolhouse. 

The legal voters at such special meeting have power to deter- 
mine the size of the building and the material to be used, and 
to vote a tax to build the same. The district meeting may also 
decrease the estimated amount of the superintendent for the erec- 
tion of such building twenty-five per cent, and the district may 
also increase the amount estimated by the superintendent. 



SITES, SCHOOL BUILDINGS, BONDS, ETC. 73 

Failure of District to Vote Tax. — When a district fails to vote 
a tax to build a schoolhouse, within thirty days from the date on 
which the first meeting for considering the question was held, the 
board of education has power, and it is its duty to contract for 
the same. This tax shall not exceed the estimate of the superintend- 
ent and shall not be more than twenty-five per cent less than such 
estimate. 

Tax for Erection of Schoolhouse in Certain Union Free-School 
Districts. — The qualified voters of a union free-school district 
not under the township law, at an annual school meeting or at a 
special meeting called for the purpose, may vote a tax for the 
erection or repair of a schoolhouse. There is no limitation in 
regard to the amount which a district may vote for this purpose 
unless there is a special act relating to such district which contains 
such limitation. 

When a district of this type refuses to vote an appropriation 
sufficient to make any necessary repairs to the schoolhouse, the 
relief of any aggrieved person residing in such district is to bring 
an appeal to the Commissioner of Education who may order the 
district to make necessary repairs. 

Payments by Installments. — When a union free-school district 
has voted a tax for the erection of a schoolhouse, it may by a 
majority vote at any meeting regularly convened, decide to raise 
the amount thus voted, by installments. The vote on the question 
must be by ballot or by taking and recording the ayes and noes. 
When such action is taken by a district meeting, it is the duty of 
the board of education to raise by tax such installments and the 
interest thereon, as they become due, in the same manner as other 
school taxes are raised. There is no limit as to the period of time 
for which the bonds in a union free-school district may be issued. 
No ta:?^ voted by a district meeting or other competent authority 
in any such city, or union free-school district exceeding the sum 
of five hundred dollars, shall be levied by the trustees until the 
Commissioner of Education shall certify that the plans and speci- 
fications for the same comply with the provisions of this law. 

Notice of Tax Proposed for School Buildings. — No vote to 
raise money by tax to purchase a new site or to change or add to 
the present site, or to build a new schoolhouse, can be taken at a 
union free-school district meeting which is authorized to desig- 
nate a site unless a notice by the board of education stating that 



74 ' NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

such tax will be proposed, and specifying the object thereof and 
the, amount to be expended therefor, shall have been given in the 
same manner as the notice of the annual meeting is given. 

Vote on Expenditure of Money. — On all propositions arising 
at such meetings, involving an expenditure of money or author- 
izing a tax levy, the vote must be by ballot or by taking and 
recording the ayes and noes. 

Rescinding Vote or Reducing Amount. — No vote requiring 
money to be raised can be rescinded nor can the arriount voted 
to be raised be reduced at a subsequent meeting, unless it is an 
adjourned meeting or a meeting ca,lled for such purpose. If it 
is a meeting called for such purpose, notice must be given in the 
manner in which all notices for annual and special meetings are 
given. The notices must state that the proposed reduction or 
the proposition to rescind the vote authorizing such money to be 
raised will be voted upon. 

May Borrow Money and Issue Bonds. — i. Whenever an 
annual or a special meeting of such union free-school district votes 
a tax to be collected in installments for the purpose of building a 
new schoolhouse or for repairing or enlarging the schoolhouse of 
the district or for the purchase of a new site or an addition to the 
present site, the board of education is authorized by law to borrow 
the money necessary at a rate not to exceed six per cent, and 
to issi^e bonds or other evidences of indebtedness therefor. The 
bonds shall be paid at maturity and shall not be sold below par. 

2. When the voters at a town school meeting have authorized 
a tax to be raised by installments, for the purpose of repairing, 
remodeling, improving or enlarging school buildings or the con- 
struction of new school buildings, at an expense exceeding five 
thousand dollars, they may authorize the issuance of bonds or 
other evidences of indebtedness therefor. The rate on such bonds 
shall not exceed six per cent and they shall not be sold below par. 
The interest and principal thereof is a charge upon, the town and 
must be paid when due.' These bonds must be issued in the man- 
ner provided by section 480 of the Education Law. ' 

Sale of Such Bonds.* — In a union free-school district whose 



* For procedure relative to legalization of bond issues, see Article 2-A of 
Municipal Corporations Law, and to the registry of bonds, see Secti6ns 10 
and II of the General Municipal Law. 



SITES, SCHOOL BUILDINGS, BONDS, ETC. 75 

boundaries do not coincide with those of an incorporated village 
or a city, the board of education of such district shall give notice 
of the time and place of the sale of such bonds, at least ten days 
prior to the date of such sale. This notice may be given by being 
published twice in each of two newspapers of the district, if 
there are two, and in one paper, if there is but one. If no news- 
paper is published in the district, then a notice of such sale must 
be posted in ten of the most conspicuous places of the district, at 
least ten days previous to the sale. The trustees having charge 
of the issue or payment of such bonds are required to make an 
annual report thereof to the clerk of the board of supervisors of 
the county in which the district is located, on or before the first day 
of November. 

In a union free-school district whose limits do coincide with 
those of an incorporated village or a city, such bonds must be pre- 
pared by the board of education and signed by the president and 
the secretary of such board and delivered to the treasurer of such 
incorporated village or city and countersigned by him. The treas- 
urer of such village or city shall give notice of the time and place 
of the sale of such bonds in the same manner as it is required 
that boards of education of districts, whose limits do not coincide 
with those of an incorporated village or a city shall give such notice. 
The proceeds of the sale of these bonds must be paid into the 
treasury of such incorporated village or city to the credit of the 
board of education of such district. 

The general municipal law relating to the sale of municipal and 
school bonds was amended by chapter 534 of the Laws of 191 7, as 
follows : 

All bonds hereafter issued by any municipal corporation, or 
by any school district or civil division of the State, shall be sold, 
in the case of a city of the first class as required by its charter 
or by any special act under which such bonds are issued, in the 
case of a city of the second class as required by section sixty-one 
of the second class cities law, and in all other cases at public 
sale not less than five or more than thirty days after a notice of 
such sale, stating the amount, date, maturity and rate of interest, 
has been published at least once in the official paper or papers, if 
any, of any such municipality, provided that if there' is no ofiicial 
paper, then such notice of sale shall be published in a newspaper 
published in the county in which such bonds are to be issued, or a 



76 ' NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

copy thereof shall be sent to and published in a financial news- 
paper published and circulating in New York city. 

Validation of Bonds. — The procedure in the issuance of such 
bonds is technical and a statutory process and each step outlined 
in the statute must be complied with. Very often the notices of 
school meetings and the other papers prepared in the proceedings 
leading to the necessary transactions to authorize the issuance of 
such bonds are defective. In many cases these papers are not 
prepared by lawyers and it often occurs that, after bonds have 
been sold, the attorney representing the purchaser of such bonds 
discovers defects in the procedure under which the bonds have 
been issued. This has necessitated a legalizing act by the Legisla- 
ture. It was frequently necessary to wait several months for the 
Legislature to convene before the sale of the bonds might be finally 
closed out and funds obtained for the erection of the building. 

To avoid such delays and to provide an effective, infexpensive 
method of meeting such situations power has been conferred upon 
the Commissioner of Education, to adjudicate all cases of this kind 
and to make an order ratifying and confirming all acts and pro- 
ceedings which may be necessary to cure any defect existing in the 
proceedings leading up to the authorization, sale and issuance of 
such bonds. This act provides that any interested party may pre- 
sent the question' to the Commissioner of Education. A board of 
education, a qualified elector, a taxpayer, the purchaser of bonds, 
or any person who may hold such bonds, may present the matter 
to the Commissioner of Education for the purpose of having any 
defect which may exist in the proceedings cured, and the sale and 
issuance of such bonds legalized and validated. 

The Commissioner of Education is given broad powers in these 
matters. If he finds on investigation of a case which has been 
properly presented to him that the requirements of the statutes 
have been substantially complied with and that there has been a 
fair expression of the will of the qualified voters of the district 
or town and that the action taken was not affected or prejudiced by 
the defects in the law or the failure to give required notices, the 
Commissioner of Education may make an order ratifying and con- 
firming the proceedings and determining that there has been a 
substantial compliance with the statute. 

Under the terms of this law the decision of the Commissioner 



SITES, SCHOOL BUILDINGS, BONDS, ETC. JJ 

of Education in such proceedings is final and conclusive, and not 
subject to review by the courts. 

Approval of Plans. — No schoolhouse shall hereafter be 
erected, repaired, enlarged or remodeled at a cost to exceed $500 
in any school district or in any city of the third class until the 
plans and specifications for the same have been submitted to the 
Commissioner of Education and his approval indorsed thereon. 

The Commissioner of Education is prohibited from approving 
plans which do not meet the following conditions: 

a. At least fifteen square feet of floor space and twQ hundred 
cubic feet of air space for each pupil to be accomm6dated in each 
study or recitation room therein must be provided. 

b. At least thirty cubic feet of pure air every minute per pupil 
must be assured. 

c. The facilities for exhausting the foul or vitiated air therein 
shall be positive and independent of atmospheric changes. 

d. All halls, doors, stairways, seats, passage-ways and aisles and 
all lighting and heating facilities and apparatus arranged to 
facilitate egress and afford adequate protection in cases' of fire or 
accident. 

e. All exit doors shall open outwardly, and shall, if double 
doors be used, be fastened with movable bolts operated simul- 
taneously by one handle from the inner face of the door. 

f. No staircase shall be constructed with winder steps in lieu of 
a platform but shall be constructed with straight runs, changes in 
direction being made by platforms. No door shall open imme- 
diately upon a flight of stairs, but a landing at least the width of 
the door shall be provided between such stairs and such doorway. 

Under this law the Commissioner of Education has adopted the 
following regulations: 

The plans and specifications must be submitted in duplicate, the 
original set to be returned after the indorsement of approval, the 
duplicate to be retained on file at this Department. 

The plans and specifications must show in detail the ventilation, 
heating and lighting of the building. The contract should include 
a guaranty that the system of ventilation described will provide at 
least 30 cubic feet of air every minute for each pupil. It will be 
necessary to give the size of windows, distance from top of window 
to ceiling and number of panes in sash. 

At least 15 square feet of floor space and 200 cubic feet of air 



78 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

space for each pupil to be accommodated in each study or recita- 
tion room must be provided. In this connection it will be neces- 
sary not only to state the size of the rooms (length, breadth and 
height) but also to give the number of individual desks to be placed 
in the room. 

The plans and specifications must clearly show that proper pro- 
vision is made in all respects " to facilitate egress in cases of fire 
or accident and to afford requisite and proper accommodations 
for public protection in such cases." 

The windows in all study rooms and recitation rooms should be 
so arranged that the main light will come from the pupils' left. 
Supplemental light from the rear is allowable to meet special con--' 
ditions. The windows should be grouped together as nearly as 
possible on the pupils' left so that the light may be massed, thereby 
furnishing a comparatively even distribution of light and minimiz-. 
ing areas of light and shadow. 

The windows should extend as near to the ceiling as the princi- 
ples of construction will admit and should be without transoms or 
unnecessary framework. 

Any considerable area on the side to the left of the pupils that is 
without window surface should be opposite the space in front or 
in the rear of the pupils' desks. 

The ratio of window sut-face to floor surface should be one to 
five. If the main light comes from the north or from a side of the 
building which is well shaded, the ratio should be one to four. 

As far as possible the rooms and windows should be so arranged 
that the aisles may run the long way of the room. 

In the primary grades the blackboards should be placed 24 to 
26 inches from the floor, in the intermediate grades 28 to 30 inches 
and in the grammar grades 32 to 34 inches. Each blackboard should 
be provided with a trough at the bottom, which should have an 
open woven wire cover on hinges. 

Special cloakrooms should be provided which should be thor- 
oughly heated and ventilated. 

A soft color should be used in finishing the walls — a light 
greenish gray. The ceiling should be white. The window shades 
should correspond in color with the walls. 

Stairways Outside of Buildings. — It is the duty of trustees or 
boards of education of all school districts outside of the city of 
New York to provide stairways on the outside of all school build- 



SITES, SCHOOL BUILDINGS, BONDS, ETC. 79 

ings that are more than two stories high, with suitable doors con- 
necting therewith from each story above the first. These may 
be built without a vote of the district, at a reasonable expense, 
which is chargeable to the district the same as other taxes. Such 
stairways shall be kept in good order and free from obstruction 
and should not be bolted or locked during school hours. 

OUT-BUILDINGS 

General Provisions. — It is the duty of a board of education to 
provide out-buildings on the school premises. The law provides 
that these buildings shall be as follows : 

I. They must be suitable and convenient. 

'i. There must be two, and they must be entirely separated from 
each other. These two closets may be under one roof and over 
the same vault. 

3. They must have separate means of access, and the approaches 
thereto must be separated by a substantial close fence, at least 
seven feet high. 

4. They must be kept in a clean and wholesome condition. 

A failure on the part of a board of education to comply with 
these provisions is sufficient reason for removing them from office, 
and for withholding from the district its share of public money 
from the State. Members of boards of education are personally 
responsible to the town or district for any loss in this respect 
through their negligence. 

Any expense incurred by a town board of education in providing 
and maintaining these out-buildings when approved by the district 
superintendent may be raised by tax without vote of the town. A 
town board may include such amount in its budget. 

A board of education may meet such expenses by payment from 
contingent fund or by tax upon the district or city without authori- 
zation by the voters thereof. 

The Board of Regents has prescribed the following regulations 
to govern the maintenance and construction of toilets: 

Outdoor Closets. — It is fundamentally important that all 
schools in city, village and country be provided with suitable toilet 
facilities. They cannot be suitable unless they are sanitary, and 
experience has demonstrated beyond the possibility of contradic- 
tion that the old type of outdoor watercloset, or earth closet, is 



80 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

not sanitary or decent, but to the contrary is a constant menace both 
to health and morals. 

As every boy and girl under the tutelage of the State is entitled 
alike to all essential safeguards, this statement necessarily applies 
to all schools regardless of size or location. The claim that the old 
type of outdoor closet has served all purposes of the district for 
generations and is therefore acceptable and suitable is without 
weight. To the contrary, experience with it in the past conclusively 
proves that it is wholly unfit and unsatisfactory. The public school 
surely ought not to be the last institution to make progress, and 
particularly in matters affecting the comfort, health and lives of 
the children who, obedient to the laws of the State, are in attend- 
ance therein. The excuse that a district cannot afford such improve- 
ments is an argument in favor of consolidation in such a case, in 
order to form a district that can afford to provide the facilities 
that are unmistakably essential to the pupils' welfare. 

Regulations. — From what has been said, it is manifest that 
the only remedy for the outdoor closet is to abolish it. With that 
end in view and to insure in its place suitable and adequate facili- 
ties, the following regulations have been adopted: 

1. Approval of plans for the construction of new school build- 
ings and for the remodeling of old buildings cannot be given until 
provision is made for an approved system of sanitary closets. 

2. All public schools must be provided with approved closet 
faciHties before September i, 1918. 

3. Whenever it becomes necessary for a district to provide new 
toilet facilities before the expiration of the time limit estabhshed, 
such faciHties must be of approved type. 

The following types are approved to meet varying conditions: 

1. A flush system. When water and suitable sewerage are avail- 
able, schools will be expected to install this system. 

2. A dry closet system. 

3. A chemical system. 

4. The L. R. S. type, described in Public Health Bulletin 51, 
published by the United States Treasury Department and issued 
by the Government Printing Office in 1914. 

5. The type where water-tight nonabsorbent receptacles, easily 
removable, are provided and clean dust or ashes is supplied and 
scattered freely over the excreta whenever the closet is used. The 
use of this type is restricted to isolated rural districts with small 



SITES, SCHOOL BUILDINGS, BONDS, ETC. 8l 

enrollment and low valuation, and special permission must be 
secured in every case. 

In all types the following conditions must be met : 

a. The closet or toilet must be in a room attached to and made 
a part of the school building, 

b. The wall and ceiling of this room must be constructed and 
finished in like manner as other rooms of the building. 

c. The urinals must be constructed of noncorrosive, nonabsort^ 
ent material. 

d. In all cases the rooms must be well lighted and ventilated. 

e. Toilet paper, wash bowl or basin and towels (paper towels) 
must be furnished. 

f. Toilet rooms must be heated in all cases where it is practica- 
ble to do so. 

g. Before constructing sanitary closets, a simple sketch of the 
rooms and approaches and a description of the closet must be suV 
mitted to the State Department of Education for approval. 

In the last three types named, the following additional conditions 
must be met : 

a. Receptacles must be of ample capacity and must be of non- 
corrosive and nonabsorbent material. 

b. Provision must be made for the ventilation of receptacles by 
means of ventilators extending through the roof. 

c. There must be a thoroughly ventilated approach leading to 
the closet from the coat room, corridor or hallway of the building. 

d. All receptacles must be of a type to be emptied outside of 
class rooms, recitation rooms, hallways and toilet rooms, and the 
construction must be such as to facilitate this process. 

e. The vaults must be tight so as to render the entrance of flies, 
mosquitoes and other insects absolutely impossible. 

f . Seats must be hinged and made to close automatically. 
Plumbing. — i. Plumbing must conform to local ordinances 

where such are in force. Where none exist, commonly accepted 
standards as exemplified in city ordinances shall govern. 

2. When no sewerage system is available for use, an application 
must be made to the State Department of Health for approval of 
a sewage disposal plant, as that department has exclusive jurisdic- 
tion over the disposition of sewage. 

3. In other than rural communities, both local and general vents 
must be provided. 

6 



S2 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

4. One seat should be provided for every 25 girls and one seat 
and one urinal for e^ery 40 boys, or a combination seat and urinal 
for every 25 boys. Both seats and urinals should be separated into 
compartments. Absorbent or corrosive materials cannot be ap- 
proved for use in the construction of urinals. 

Transfer of School,. Property to the Town. — The school build- 
ings in the several districts of a town unit were erected and paid 
for by the taxpayers of the several towns. These buildings are 
therefore the property of such districts and may not be taken over 
by another corporation without such districts receiving due com- 
pensation therefor. In other words one corporation cannot take 
the property of another corporation without due process of law and 
without due compensation. The township plan proposes that the 
town as a school unit shall become a new corporation to perform 
the business which the several districts performed, and that this 
new corporation shall succeed to all the rights of the property for- 
merly held by the several school districts. This property, of course, 
cannot be taken by the town unless adequate compensation is paid 
the district for the property thus taken. A plan is proposed in the 
law to meet this situation, which is as follows : 

1. It ,is provided that a value shall be fixed upon all the school 
property of the several districts in each town. A commission is 
authorized to appraise and determine the valijie of such property. 
This commission consists of the supervisor of the town, the chair- 
man of the town board of education and the district su^perintendent 
of schools. The law provides that this commission shall within 
one year from the time the township law took effect fix a value 
upon such school property. 

2. Having appraised and fixed a value upon the property of each 
district this commission should deduct therefrom the outstanding 
bonded indebtedness against each of such districts. The town 
assumes the outstanding bonded obligation. The town must also 
reimburse the several school districts for the value which the com- 
mission has fixed upon the school property. This amount must be 
raised by a town school tax as other school expenses are raised. 
Such tax must be levied and collected in five equal annual install- 
ments and the amount required for this purpose must be included 
hj the board of education in the annual tax budget of the town, 
beginning with the year 1918. 

3. This commission must apportion the amount credited to each 



SITES, SCHOOL BUILDINGS, BONDS, ETC. 83 

district among the owners or possessors of taxable property in the 
district in the ratio of their several assessments on the last cor- 
rected assessment roll of the town. A written report should be 
made by the commission to the board of education of the town 
showing the apportionment which such commission has made. The 
board of education should then issue to each of the owners or 
possessors of taxable property a certificate of credit showing the 
amount which has been apportioned to each of such persons. This 
certificate of credit is transferable and shall be payable an- 
nually out of the amount raised by the board of education for 
that purpose. The board of education in issuing such certificates 
shall issue them in such denominations and shall fix the date of 
maturity at a time so as to provide for the payment of such certifi- 
cates out of the funds raised by tax for that purpose. 

4. The law makes it the duty of the Commissioner of Education 
to prescribe rules governing this commission in its appraisal of the 
school property and to regulate the distribution and apportionment 
of credits and charges provided under the plan of fixing the value 
of such property and also the form and denomination of the certifi- 
cates. The law seeks to further safeguard the rights of the tax- 
payers of the town, as well as the rights of the property owners 
of school districts, by providing for an adjustment of any erroneous 
action or any unjust disposition of these matters through an appeal 
to the Commissioner of Education who is authorized to hear any 
question or difference of opinion in the whole transaction and to 
determine the equities therein and make all necessary orders to 
make his determination effective. 

Use of School Buildings. — i. The use of a school building in 
a district or city must be granted for holding any examination 
or institute appointed therein by the Commissioner of Education. 
No charge can be made for the use of such building for these pur- 
poses but a reasonable allowance may be paid for lig'hting, heating 
and janitor service. 

2. When a building is not in use for school purposes it may be 
used on approval of the board of education by persons desiring to 
give or receive instruction in any branch of education or learning 
or in the science and practice of music. (See also chapter lo, 
powers and duties of trustees.) 

3. The most comprehensive law enacted in any State in relation 



84 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

to the use of schools, grounds and buildings was enacted hy the 
Legislature of New York in 1913. 

This law confers upon local school authorities the power to 
employ persons to supervise and conduct athletic, play-ground and 
social center activities when authorized by a district meeting. Regu- 
larly employed teachers may be paid additional compensation for ser- 
vices rendered in supervising and conducting these activities. 

This law further provides for the use of schoolhouses and 
grounds outside of school hours. Under these provisions of the 
law school grounds and buildings may be used for social, civic 
and recreational meetings and entertainments and other uses per- 
taining to the welfare of the community in general. These meet- 
ings must be open to the public, and no fee may be charged unless 
the proceeds are to be used for an educational or charitable purpose. 

Upon petition of twenty-five or more citizens of a city, union 
free-school district or town, the board of education is required to 
organize and conduct community centers for civic purposes and 
civic forums to promote and advance principles of Americanization. 
Funds must be provided by local authorities for the maintenance 
of such centers or forums and such authorities may prescribe rules 
to make the same self-supporting. Such centers and forums must 
at all times be under the control of the board of education and 
must be noi^exclusive and open to the pubhc. 

It should be understood that under this provision of the law, 
school property is not open to the use of a religious denomination, 
a fraternal, secret or other exclusive society or organization. 

A district meeting possesses the power to authorize the use of 
school buildings for political meetings, and for polling places for 
primaries and general elections. 

Sale of Buildings. — When a union free-school district decides 
to build a new schoolhouse, the district meeting should direct what 
disposition should be made of the old building. This is usually 
done by directing the board to sell it at public auction. The district 
meeting may, however, direct some other course to be pursued. 

The school buildings may be sold when a district has been dis- 
solved and the buildings are no longer needed for school purposes. 

The school buildings may also be sold when the site of the build- 
ings has been changed. 

Insurance of Buildings. — The board of education of a town 
or of a union free-school district should insure the buildings under 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 85 

its control. The powers of the board in this respect are explained 
fully in the chapter treating of the powers and duties of boards 
of education of union free-school districts. 

Sale of Liquors Prohibited Near Schoolhouses. — Traffic in 
liquor is prohibited in a building, yard, booth, or other place which 
shall be on the same avenue or street and within 200 feet of a build- 
ing used exclusively as a schoolhouse. The measurements must be 
taken in a straight line from the center of the nearest entrance to 
the building used for such school to the center of the nearest 
entrance to the place in which such liquor traffic is desired to be 
carried on. This prohibition, however, does not apply to a place 
which on the 23d day of March, 1896, was lawfully occupied as a 
hotel, or in which the traffic in liquors was lawfully carried on or 
which was in process of construction. (Subdivision 2, section 23, 
Liquor Tax Law.) 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

Explain fully how a site or an addition to a site is designated by a town 
board of education? What meeting can decide upon a site for a school- 
house in a union free-school district? How must such decision be deter- 
mined? What must the resolution contain? How must the vote be taken? 
What record must be made? When may such a district designate more than 
one site? What must the notice of a special meeting state? How can the 
site of such a school district be improved or enlarged? At what meetings? 
What tax may such a district vote in relation to sites? Is there a limit to 
the amount that can be voted? How is such tax levied and assessed? How 
may the school site of such a district be changed? What property cannot 
be taken for a site? What disposition is made of the old site and buildings 
of such a district when a change of site has been legally made? How may 
the title of such property be transferred? What disposition must be made of 
the proceeds of the sale of such property? When may a board designate a 
site without vote of the district? 

How may land be acquired for school purposes when the owner refuses 
to sell? Mention five kinds of property which may not be taken for school 
purposes? 

Who is required to' keep school property in repair which is under the con- 
trol of the town board? What powers has a town board in this respect? 
What limitation is imposed upon a town board in the expenditures it may 
make for such purpose? How may a board obtain authority to expend a 
larger amount ? What action should a town board take when a district super- 
intendent condemns a school building? What is the duty of a town board 
when the people refuse to vote the required amount of funds? When may a 
town board erect a school building without vote of people? When may funds 
authorized be raised by installment? When may a district superintendent 



86 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

condemn a school building in a union free-school district? How? What 
estimate in regard to the expenditure in erecting schoolhouse should the 
order of the district superintendent contain? Upon whom must the district 
superintendent serve such notice? What is the duty of the board when 
served with such notice? What power has a meeting in relation to such 
matters when regularly called? May the district decrease the estimate of 
the district .superintendent? By vi^hat amount? May the amount be in- 
creased? How much? Within what period should a district vote to build? 
What is the duty of the board if the district takes no action within that 
time? What tax in this case may a board levy without a vote of the district? 

When may a board of education of a union free-school district raise funds 
for a new school building by installments? What limit as to time if any is 
imposed? What approval must be obtained in certain cases? How must a 
vote authorizing such expenditures be taken? By what method may a vote 
authorizing such expenditure be rescinded or the amount reduced? What 
must the notice of such meeting contain and how must it be given? When 
may bonds be issued ? What limitations are imposed upon the sale of such 
bonds? Explain fully the sale of bonds in a district whose boundaries do 
not coincide with the boundaries of an incorporated village. In one where 
they do so coincide. 

Is it essential that all proceedings relating to a bond issue shall be in strict 
accordance with the law? Why? What officer is authorized to correct pro- 
ceedings in such bond issue? In what cases? Upon whose application? 
What action must such officer take first ? What orders may he make ? What 
is the effect of such order? 

What is the requirement of the law in relation to the approval of plans 
for the construction of a schoolhouse? What is the requirement as to floor 
space? Amount of pure air? The exhaustion^ of foul air? Doors, halls, 
stairways, seat, aisles, etc? Exit doors? Staircase? Define fully the re- 
quirements under the regulations of the Commissioner of Education. What 
is the requirement as to outside stairways? 

Name four specific requirements in relation to outbuildings. What penalty 
may be imposed upon a district or town for failure to observe these require- 
ments? Upon a board of education? How is an expense incurred paid? 
What recommendation has the Board of Regents made in relation to out- 
door closets? Why? Name three general regulations prescribed by the 
Regents. Name and describe each of five types of closets approved by the 
Regents. Name seven conditions which must be satisfied by each of these 
types. Name six additional conditions which must be satisfied by three of 
the other types and specify such types. Name five conditions regulating the 
plumbing of toilets. 

Why is it necessary to fix a value upon all school property in school dis- 
tricts which go under the township law? What commission is authorized to 
appraise such property? Within what time must this be done? What be- 
comes of the bonded indebtedness of school districts? Who is entitled to 
reimbursement? Why? How are funds obtained? Within what period of 
time? How^is this money apportioned? What certificate is isued? Why? 
Explain by whom and in what manner such certificates are issued. By whom 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 8/ 

are regulations prescribed? How may errors or defects in procedure in such, 
matter be corected ? 

State the various purposes for which school buildings may be used. State 
the prohibitions as to the use of such buildings. When may a schoolhouse 
be sold? By whom? What is the law in relation to the insurance of school 
buildings? What is the prohibition as to the sale of liquors near a school- 
house? 



CHAPTER X 

TOWNSHIP SYSTEM 

[Chapter 328, Laws of 1917 or Article XI-A] 

General Statement. — For more than fifty years there has been 
discussion in educational circles, and at various times in the Legis- 
latvire, on what has generally come to be known in school matters 
as the township school system. The township plan contemplated 
the abandonment of the school district system and the substitution 
therefor of a town unit in the administration of schools. The 
township bill, introduced into the Legislature by Assemblyman 
Madiold in the Assembly and by Senator Halliday in the Senate, 
passed .both branches of the Legislature, and on May 2, 1917, 
received the approval of Governor Whitman. Under the terms of 
this law of 1917 the old school district system, which had its incep- 
tion in the year 1795, is abolished and the schools of an entire 
town are placed under the control of one board, known as the town 
board of education. Every State which borders New York had pre- 
viously adopted the township system and was administering the 
affairs of its rural schools with the town as the unit instead of the 
school district. 

The township law does not include within its provisions any of 
the following school districts : 

1. A union free-school district having a population of 1,500 or 
more. 

2. A union free-school district employing 15 teachers or more 

3. The school districts within the county of Nassau. 

All other territory in the several towns of the State is brought 
under the control of the township system by the provisions of 
this law. A school district which did not satisfy one of the three 
exemptions above stated on the second day of May, 19 17, is under 
the township system. The fact that a union free-school district 
may hereafter reach a population of 1,500 or more, or that such 
district may hereafter employ 15 teachers or more, does not operate 
to take such district out of the control of the township law. 



TOWNSHIP SYSTEM 89 

Town School Units. — The township law provides that in a 
town having two or more union free-school districts, each having 
a population of less than 1,500 and each maintaining an academic 
department which has been admitted to the University of the State 
of New York, the district superintendent must by order divide such 
town into as many town school units as there are such union free- 
school districts situated in the town. The district superintendent 
was required ot make such division of town units immediately after 
the law became effective. 

It was the duty of the district superintendent in making these 
divisions to take into consideration the accessibility of the outlying 
districts to the school maintained in the union free-school district. 
This action was necessary because the academic department of the 
union free-school district was intended to be available to all the 
pupils residing in the town school unit. No school district might 
be divided in forming a town school unit. Each town school unit 
is entitled to a separate board of education. It was the duty of the 
district superintendent to execute in triplicate his order dividing 
the town, to file one copy of such order in the office of the town 
clerk of the town, one in the office of the Commissioner of Educa- 
tion and the third to be retained in the office of the district 
superintendent. 

Each town school unit is to be considered in all respects as a 
town for the purposes of the town school act. Wherever the word 
" town " is used in the township law it refers to a town school unit. 
The terms " school officers," " school meetings," " school elec- 
tions," etc., must always be construed as referring to the town 
school unit. A town school unit may be either an entire town or 
a portion of a town. 

Consolidation of Town School Units. — i. Two or more town 
school units in the same town may be consolidated into one unit. 
A proceeding for this purpose should be initiated by the voters of 
the units desiring to consolidate. Twenty-five of the qualified voters 
of each of such units may petition the district superintendent to 
have the two units united and placed under the control of one board 
of education. A district superintendent who receives such peti- 
tion should direct the board of education of such town units to sub- 
mit to the voters of their respective units at the next annual school 
meeting the question : " Shall all the schools of the town of 
be placed under the jurisdiction of one town board of 



90 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

education?" If a majority of the voters of each of these units 
voting at such election vote in favor of the proposition the con- 
sohdation is adopted and becomes effective one year from the first 
day of August next following such annual meeting. One year 
from the first day of August next following the meeting at which 
%uch vote was taken the terms of office of the members of the 
boards of education of such town units shall terminate. At the 
annual meeting held next after such consolidation is authorized a 
single board shall be elected for the territory thus consolidated. 

2. A union free-school district not under the provisions of the 
township law may come under the provisions of such law. If 15 
per cent of the qualified voters of such district petition the board 
of education to vote upon the question of consolidating with the 
schools under the control of the town board, it is the duty of the 
board of education to submit such question to either an annual or 
a special meeting of the district. If a resolution in favor of such 
consolidation is adopted at that meeting and if the board of edu- 
cation (known as the town board), having control of the remain- 
ing schools in the town, receive a petition from the voters residing 
within the town unit to submit to the voters of that unit the ques- 
tion of accepting the union free-school district, it is the duty of 
such board of education to submit the question at either an annual 
or a special meeting to permit the voters to determine whether or 
not such union free-school district shall become a part of the 
town unit. If a resolution is adopted favoring such consolidation 
the schools of such union free-school district and of the town unit 
shall merge into one unit and come under the control of the town 
board of education. 

3. After favorable action is taken by such district on this propo- 
sition, the board of education of the town shall, upon a petition 
signed by fifteen per cent of the qualified school electors of such 
town, not including the electors of such union free-school district, 
submit the question to the voters of such town at either an annual 
or special school meeting to determine whether or not such town 
and the union free-school district shall combine and have but one 
board of education. A majority vote of those present and voting 
is required of the district which desires to come under the town- 
ship system and a similar vote is also, required of that portion of 
the town which forms the township unit within the town. The 
initiative must be taken by the district which is not included within 



TOWNSHIP SYSTEM 9I 

the provisions of the township law and, unless affirmative action 
is taken by that district at the meeting, no further action may be 
taken. If affirmative action is taken the question must then be sub- 
mitted to the voters of the i*emaining portion of the town and 
receive affirmative action by such voters. In other words, the dis- 
trict which is not under the provisions of this law and that portion 
of the town which is under the law must each vote in favpr of the 
consolidation, if such consolidation is to be made. 

Scsool District Officers Abolished. — i. The officers of all the 
trustees of each school district, the members of the board of edu- 
cation of each free-school district, and all other school officers of 
school districts which come within the provisions of the township 
law, including district clerks, collectors, treasurers, etc., are abol- 
ished and their terms of office terminated on the thirty-first day 
of July, 1917. 

2. It is necessary, of course, to close up all business affairs of 
these school districts, and as it might not be possible for school 
officers to adjust all these matters, collect all outstanding bills, dis- 
charge all obligations, etc., prior to July 31, 1917, it was provided 
in the law that all of these officers should be continued for the pur- 
pose of closing up all business and financial affairs of school 
districts, of satisfying their obligations, except bonded indebted- 
ness, adjusting their claims, collecting funds due them, and paying 
their just debts. These officers, however, can enter into no new 
obligations which bind their districts in any way whatever, and 
any new obligation incurred by such officers is a personal obliga- 
tion and liability and not a district liability. 

Disposition of Surplus Funds in District Treasury. — Any 
funds, except public moneys received from the State, remaining 
in the treasury of a school district after all its outstanding obliga- 
tions and claims have been satisfied, except bonded* indebtedness, 
is the property of the district. It is the duty of the trustee of the 
district J;o apportion such money among the taxpayers of such 
district. Such apportionment shall be based upon the relation of 
the assessed valuation of the property of such taxpayers to the 
aggregate assessed valuation of the district. 

Disposition of State Funds. — If there are State funds remain- 
ing in the treasury of the district which could not be legilly used 
by the district officers in adjusting their outstanding claims, such 



92 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

funds must be paid by the custodian thereof to the town school 
treasury. 

Schools Free to Children of the Town. — The schools main- 
tained under the township law are supported by the taxable prop- 
erty of the entire town. The word town as used in this respect, 
as elsewhere in reference to the township law, means, of course, 
a town school unit. Since these schools are maintained by all the 
taxable property of the town such schools must be free to all the 
children of the town. The law specifically provides that each 
department of each school maintained in a town, and each course of 
study maintained therein, shall be free to the children of school age 
residing in such town. This must not be understood to mean that 
a child has the right to attend such school in town as that child or 
his parents may desire him to attend. School district organizations 
are maintained and it is presupposed that a school will be main- 
tained in each district. It is the duty of the town boards of educa- 
tion to maintain schools of as nearly equal standing in the several 
grades and departments of the several districts as may be possible. 
If the town board maintains a commercial course in one of the 
schools of the town that course must be open to any pupil residing 
in the town who possesses the qualifications prescribed for admission 
to such course. If the town board of education maintains an aca- 
demic course in one of the schools such academic course must be 
open to every child in the town who meets the qualifications pre- 
scribed for admission to such course, etc. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

Name two -classes of school districts which do not come within the township 
law. A county. When must these requirements have been satisfied? What 
is the effect of meeting them later? On what basis is a town divided in 
school units? Who divides a town into such units ? Why? How are orders 
made and where filed ? Explain the meaning of the word " town " as used 
in this law. Explain fully how two or more town school units may be con- 
solidated. Explain the process by which a union free-school district not 
under the township law may come under it. What school district offices 
were abolished on July ist? For what purposes were these offices continued? 
What disposition was made of State funds in the treasury of the district? 
Of other funds? What schools or courses are free in a town? Why? 



CHAPTER XI 

TOWN BOARDS OF EDUCATION; CLERK; TREASURER 

[Article XI-A] 

Number of Members. — A board of education is established for 
each town. Where the number of school districts in a town is 
five or less the board of education must contain three members. 
When the number of school districts in a town exceeds five, the 
board of education in such town must contain five members. 

Term of Office. — In towns where there are three members on 
the board one is to hold office until August i, 1918, one until 
August I, 1919, and one until August i, 1920. In towns in which 
there are five members on the board two are to hold office until 
August I, 1918, two until August i, 1919, and one until August i, 
1920. 

The term of each officer elected should be designated at the time 
of election. Not more than three members of a board of education 
shall reside in one school district. The law contemplates that the 
larger and more populous school districts will be given adequate 
representation on the board. 

Qualifications of Members. — Any person residing in the town, 
who is qualified to vote at a town school meeting, is eligible to the 
office of member of a board of education, except the supervisor of 
the town and the district superintendent of schools. Not more than 
one member of a family shall be a member of the same board of 
education. Members of one family residing in the same household 
are regarded as members of the same family. In the case of a 
father and son who live together as one family in the same dwelling, 
only one of such persons would be entitled to serve on the same 
town board of education. The question is frequently raised as to 
whether or not a teacher in a town may be a member of a town 
board of education. Section 285 of the Education Law prohibits a 
trustee from being personally interested either directly or indirectly 
in any contract which he makes in behalf of the district. The town- 

93 



94 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

ship law subjects members of town boards of education to all duties, 
obligations and responsibilities which the provisions of the Educa- 
tion Law impose on trustees of school districts. Teachers are not, 
therefore, eligible to membership on a town board of education. 
If no provision were contained in the Education Law in relation to 
the matter, the two positions — as teacher in a school and as a 
member of the controlling board of such school — would be incom- 
patible. If a person who is a member of a board of education is 
removed by order of the Commissioner of Education, that person 
is not eligible to membership on the board of education or to any 
other school office in the town for a period of five years from the 
date of such removal. No other person is prohibited from serving 
as a member of a town board of education. 

Board a Body Corporate. — The law specifically provides that 
the board of education of each town shall be a corporation. All 
property which is now vested in, or shall hereafter be transferred 
to, the board of education of a town for the use of the schools 
therein shall be held by such board as a corporation. 

Vacancies on Board. — i. A member of a board of education 
vacates his office by death, resignation, refusal to serve, incapacity, 
removal from the town, or from office. 

2. A member of a board, of education who publicly declares that 
he will not accept or serve in the office of such mem.ber, or refuses 
or neglects to attend three successive meetings of the board of 
which he is duly notified, without giving a valid reason therefor to 
such board, vacates his office by refusal to serve. 

3, A member of a board of education who should accept either 
the office of district superintendent of schools or of supervisor of a 
town would also vacate his office. 

Filling Vacancy in Board. — A board of education is authorized 
to fill any vacancy existing on a town board. The person appointed 
to such vacancy holds office until the next annual school meeting of 
a town. At such meeting the vacancy should be filled by election 
for the balance of the unexpired term. 

If a vacancy exists in the office of a member of a town board for 
thirty days the district superintendent may then fill such vacancy 
by appointment thereto of a qualified person, who shall hold office 
until the next annual school meeting of the town. Such vacancy 
should then be filled by election for the balance of the unexpired 
term. 

/ 



TOWN BOARDS OF EDUCATION; CLERK; TREASURER 95 

Annual Meeting of Board. — The annual meeting of a town 
board of education must be held on the first Tuesday in August. 

Regular Meetings of Board. — The board of education must 
hold a regular meeting at least once in each quarter. The board 
may prescribe the time and place where regular meetings may be 
held and it may also determine the method of calling special meet- 
ings. The meetings of the board must be open to the public, but 
such board may hold executive sessions at which business may be 
transacted which should not, in its judment, he transacted in an open 
session. 

Chairman of Board. — A town board of education is authorized 
to elect one of its members chairman, who serves until the next 
annual meeting of the board. A town board may also appoint a 
clerk and a school treasurer. These officers may serve during the 
pleasure of the board. To be eligible to the office of clerk or treas- 
urer a person must be qualified to vote at town school meetings in 
the town. The law prohibits a member of a board of education or 
a teacher employed in a school in the town from holding either of 
these offices. The board of education is authorized to fix the salary 
of the clerk and also of the treasurer. The board is also given the 
power to determine the duties which these officers shall perform in 
addition to those which the law itself imposes upon them. 

Powers and Duties of a Board of Education. — The law 
specifically imposes the following powers and duties upon each town 
board of education : 

1. Exercise the powers and perform the duties conferred or 
imposed by law upon boards of education or trustees of school dis- 
tricts, so far as they may be applicable to the schools or other edu- 
cational affairs of the town and not inconsistent with the pro- 
visions of this article. Any power, duty, liability or obligation 
which is conferred or imposed by this chapter, or any other statute, 
upon the board of education of a union free-school district or the 
trustees of a school district, shall be exercised or performed by the 
board of education of a town, and such board shall be subject to 
such liability or obligation, in respect to the schools in the town, 
in the same manner and to the same extent as in the case of boards 
of education in union free-school districts or trustees of school 
districts. 

2, Determine the number of teachers to be employed in the several 
schools of the town and to contract with principals and teachers 



96 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

for the maintenance and operation of such schools pursuant to the 
provisions of this chapter; employ or appoint medical inspectors, 
nurses, attendance officers, janitors and other employees required 
for the proper and efficient management of the schools and other 
educational affairs under their direction and control, 

3. Provide transportation when necessary for children attending 
school, under regulations to be prescribed by it. 

4. Have the care, custody, control and safekeeping of all school 
property or other property of the town used for educational, social 
or recreational work and not specifically placed by law under the 
control of some other body or officer, and prescribe rules and regu- 
tions for the preservation of such property. 

5. Purchase and furnish such apparatus, maps, globes, books, 
reproductions of standard works of art, furniture and other equip- 
ment and supplies as may be necessary for the proper and efficient 
management of the schools. 

6. Establish and maintain elementary schools, high schools, 
vocational, industrial, agricultural and home-making schools or 
classes, night schools, or such other schools and classes as shall be 
deemed necessary to meet the needs and demands of the town. 

7. Establish and maintain school libraries which may be open to 
the public as provided by law. 

8. Prescribe courses of study which shall be followed in the 
schools or classes established and maintained in the town. 

9. Contract with boards of education of other towns, and of 
union free school districts and cities for the instruction of pupils 
of the town, and when any such contract is made the public money 
or State tuition apportioned for such instruction shall be paid to 
such town. 

10. The general intent of the law is to confer upon a town board 
broad general powers, sufficient to perform any duty in connection 
with the administration of public education in the town which may 
be necessary to meet the educational needs and desires of the people 
of the town. 

Board May Borrow Money. — After a town board of education 
has levied and assessed the amount called for in a tax budget upon 
the property of the town and has issued its warrant for the col- 
lection of the same, such board may borrow on the credit of the 
district in anticipation of the funds to be raised under such tax levy. 
Undoubtedly a board could legally borrow money after its tax 



TOWN BOARDS OF EDUCATION; CLERK; TREASURER 97 

budget has been prepared and previous to the actual levying of taxes 
and issuance of warrant. The law provides that certificates of 
indebtedness may be issued by a town board of education in such 
cases. This certificate must be signed by the president of the board 
and countersigned by the treasurer. The certificate may not be 
issued for more than one year from its' date and shall bear interest 
at a rate not to exceed six per cent. The money thus borrowed must 
be placed in the treasury of the town and shall be paid out by the 
treasurer on the order of the board of education in the same manner 
as money collected by taxes levied against the property of the town. 

Election of First Board of Education. — The township bill as 
originally prepared and introduced into the Legislature provided 
that the first board of education should be elected by the voters of 
the town in the same manner that members of a board are required 
to be elected under the law in succeeding years. The State Grange 
recommended at its annual meeting in 191 7 that trustees should be 
continued in the several school districts of the town for the purpose 
of choosing a town board, and that these trustees should meet 
annually and elect such members of the town board as it was neces- 
sary to elect each year. Opposition to this plan developed in the 
Legislature and a compromise was reached by which it was provided 
that the trustees of the several districts of a town should select the 
first town board of education. This statement is made for the pur- 
pose of preserving the facts in relation to this feature of the bill and 
as a matter of history in the enactment of the measure. 

Under this provision of the law the trustees and members of 
boards of education of the several districts in a town were required 
to meet on the second Tuesday in June, 19 17, in one of the school- 
houses of the town designated by the district superintendent of 
schools for the purpose of electing a town board of education. 
These trustees were required to organize by electing a chairman and 
clerk. The law specified that thereupon they should proceed to 
elect the members of the town board of education. There is nothing 
in the statute specifically prescribing the method by which the mem- 
bers of a board of education should be elected. The qualifications 
prescribed in the statute for eligibility to member of a town board 
of education were specified as the qualifications for eligibility to 
the first board chosen under the provisions of the law. The chair- 
man and clerk of the meeting were required to canvass the votes cast 
for candidates for the offices to be filled, and the one receiving the 
7 



go NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

majority of the votes cast was elected. The law required the chair- 
man and clerk of this meeting to notify the district superintendent 
in writing of the persons declared elected as members of the town 
board of education. The district superintendent was required to 
notify each of the persons thus elected. The district superintend- 
ent was also required to call a meeting of the town board thus 
chosen in each of the towns of his supervisory district on the first 
day of August, 191 7, at the principal schoolhouse of the town for the 
purpose of organization and the transaction of any other business 
which might properly come before the board. 

Duties of Clerk. — The law specifically confers upon the clerk 
of a town board the following duties : 

1. Act as clerk at all meetings of the board and record the pro- 
ceedings of such meetings, and the orders and resolutions adopted 
thereat, in proper books. 

2. Draw and sign warrants upon the treasurer for all moneys 
to be disbursed by the town for school purposes and present them 
to the chairman to be countersigned by that officer. Each warrant 
shall specify the object for which it is drawn, the fund from which 
it is payable and the name of the individual or corporation to whom 
the amount thereof is payable. 

3. When directed by the board of education, prepare all reports 
required by law and forward the same to the proper offices. 

4. Perform such other duties as are or shall be required by law 
or by the board of education. 

5. In addition thereto the clerk must perform any other duty 
which the board of education imposes upon hi^. 

Duties of Treasurer. — The law specifically" confers the follow- 
ing duties upon the treasurer : 

1. Be the custodian of all school moneys of the town and be 
responsible for the safekeeping and accurate account thereof. 

2. Pay all orders or warrants lawfully drawn upon him out of 
the moneys in his hands belonging to the funds upon which such 
orders or warrants are drawn. 

3. Keep accurate accounts of all moneys received and disbursed 
by him, the sources from which they are received and the persons 
to whom, and the objects for which, they are disbursed. 

4. Prepare and submit as required by law annual reports of 
receipts and disbursements, and render at such times as may be 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 99 

required by law or directed by the board of education, a report or 
statement relative to the school funds of the town. 

5. The treasurer is required to perform such other duties as the 
board of education imposes upon him. 

Treasurer's Bond. — Within ten days after receiving notice of 
his appointment, the treasurer should execute and deliver to the 
"board of education a bond, in such sum as the board prescribes and 
with sureties approved by such board, conditioned for the faithful 
discharge of the duties of his office. Failure on the part of the 
treasurer to execute such bond vacates his office. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

How many members on a townboard? What is the term of office? What is 
the intention of the law as to representation on such boards? Who are 
eligible to membership? Who are not eligible? May a teacher serve on such 
board? Why? Is a town board of education a corporation? In whom is 
the school property of the town vested? How may a member of the town 
board of education vacate his office? How may a vacancy on a town board 
be filled? When may a district superintendent appoint? When is the annual 
meeting held? How often must regular meetings be held? How may special 
meetings be held? Must the meetings of the board be open or cloesd ses- 
sions? Who is the presidiri^ officer of the town board? By whom chosen? 
What officers does a town Board select? What are their qualifications? How 
is the salary of each fixed? How are the duties determined? Mention nine 
general powers and duties of a board. What is the general intention of the 
law? When may a board borrow money? What security may be given? 
For what period ctf time? At what per cent? How was the first board of 
education elected? State why this plan is adopted? State four general duties 
of the clerk? What other duties must he perform? State four general duties 
of a treasurer? What, other duties must he perform? What bond is a 
treasurer required to give? What is the effect if he does not give such bond? 



CHAPTER XII 

TOWN SCHOOL MEETING 

[Article XI-A] 

Annual Meeting. — The annual town school meeting of each 
town, or each school unit in a town, shall be held on the first 
Tuesday in May. 

Purpose of Meeting. — The purpose of this meeting is to elect 
members of the boards of education and to transact such other busi- 
ness as the law authorizes to be determined before annual town 
school meetings. 

Place of Meeting. — The board of education must designate a 
schoolhouse in the town at which the annual meeting shall be held. 
In designating such place of meeting the board should select a school- 
house in the town which is the most conveniently accessible to a 
majority of the qualified voters in the town. 

School Election Districts. — If the territory embraced within 
a town is so large that it is not feasible to bring all the voters 
together at one central point, the town board of education may 
divide such town into school election districts. Jt is within the 
power of the board of education to determine how many of these 
school election districts shall be organized. If the board of educa- 
tion divides a town into school election districts the board must also 
designate the particular schoolhouse in each of such districts in 
which the annual meeting of the district shall be held. 

Polls. — The polls of the election of members of boards of 
education at a town meeting must be open from 9 o'clock in the 
morning until 4 o'clock in the afternoon. 

Notice of Meeting. — It is the duty of the clerk of the board of 
education to give notice of the time and place of the annual school 
meeting. This notice should be published once each week for the 
four weeks preceding the date of such meeting in two newspapers, 
if there should be two, or in one newspaper, if there shall be but 
one published or circulated in such town. If no newspaper shall 

100 



TOWN SCHOOL MEETING lOI 

be published or circulated in the town such notice must be posted 
on the door of each schoolhouse in the town and in at least ten other 
public places of the town. This notice must be posted at least 20 
days before the date of such meeting. 

Special Town School Meeting. — i. The board of education has 
authority to call a special meeting of the qualified voters of a town 
to consider such mattery pertaining to the administration of the 
schools as the board deems necessary and expedient for the people 
of the town to consider at a special meeting. 

2. Notice of such meeting must be given by the clerk of the 
board of education in the same manner as the law requires notice 
of an annual meeting to be given. 

Place of Meeting. — All special meetings must be held at t'he 
schoolhouses at which the annual school meeting of the town is 
required to be held. 

Qualifications of Voters.-^ To be eligible to vote at a town 
school meeting a person must possess the qualifications prescribed 
in chapter VIII. 

Poll List. — I. On or before the first day of April, annually, the 
clerk of the board of education is required to prepare a list of all 
persons qualified to vote at school meetings held in the town. The 
names on the poll list must be arranged alphabetically, according to 
their surnames, and the residence of each voter must be entered 
opposite his name. 

2. If a town has been divided into school election districts the 
clerk should prepare a separate poll list containing the names of the 
qualified voters residing in each district. 

Filing Poll List. — After the poll list is prepared it must be 
placed on file in the office of the clerk of the board of education. 
The board of education may designate some more convenient place 
for the filing of such list. This list may be examined by any legal 
voter of the school election district from 4 to 8 o'clock on the even- 
ing of each Friday and Saturday of the four weeks immediately 
preceding the annual school meeting. It is the duty of the clerk 
of the board of education, or some other person designated by such 
board, to be present at these hours, at the place where such list is 
filed, to permit the public inspection of such list which the law 
rquires. 

Correction of List. — If the name of a person who is qualified 
to vote at an annual meeting is not upon such list such person may 



I02 JJEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

submit to the clerk of the board evidence to show that he is quali- 
fied to vote at such meeting, and the clerk shall then correct such list 
by placing his name thereon. If the name or the residence of a 
qualified elector is incorrectly stated upon the poll list the clerk, upon 
satisfactory evidence furnished him, may correct such error. 

Review of Poll List by Board. — The board of education of a 
town shall meet on the Monday preceding the annual school meeting 
and may, upon satisfactory evidence being presented to it, correct 
errors in the list of qualified voters and place the names of qualified 
voters who have been omitted upon such list. 

Written Challenges. — A person qualified to vote at an annual 
school meeting of a town may file with the clerk of the board of 
education a written challenge of the qualifications, as an elector, of 
any person whose name appears upon the list. When the board of 
education reviews such list for correction it must indicate upon this 
list the persons whose qualifications as voters have thus been 
challenged. 

Corrected List Filed With Inspectors. — The clerk of the board 
of education shall delirer to the inspectors appointed to conduct 
town school meetings a copy of the revised and corrected poll list. 
If a town is divided into school election districts, a copy of such 
revised and corrected list for each district must be filed with the 
inspectors thereof. 

Nomination of* Officers. — Candidates for members of a town 
board of education must be nominated by petition. This petition 
must be directed to the clerk of the board of education of the town. 
It must be signed by at least 25 qualified voters of the town. It 
must contain the names and residences of the candidates and must 
show whether such candidates are nominated for full terms, or 
unexpired terms. This petition must be filed with the clerk of the 
board of education on or before the fifteenth day preceding the day 
of the annual school meeting. Any 25 qualified electors of a town 
may, therefore, nominate a candidate for the office of member of the 
board of education. 

Official Ballots. — i. The board of education of a town is required 
to provide printed official ballots, which shall contain the names of 
all candidates who have ,been nominated. These ballots must show 
whether the persons named thereon are candidates for full terms or 
for part terms. The names of candidates must be arranged alpha- 
betically according to their surnames, and in columns which shall 



TOWN SCHOOL MEETING IO3 

show whether such candidates are to be elected for full terms or for 
portions of terms. Blank spaces shall also be provided in such bal- 
lots so that persons may vote for candidates who have not been 
regularly nominated by petition. Instructions as to the marking of 
the ballots and the number of candidates for the various offices for 
which an elector is permitted to vote must be printed on the ballot. 

2. When the voters of a town school meeting are required to vote 
upon some special proposition brought before them for determina- 
tion, the ballots used therefor shall conform as nearly as may be to 
the ballots required to be used for similar purposes at a general 
election, under the election law. 

3. The number of ballots provided for meetings shall equal the 
number of qualified voters of the town, as shown by the poll list, 
prepared therefor. It is the duty of the clerk of the board to deliver,, 
on the day of the meeting, a sufficient supply of such ballots for the 
use of the voters of the town, to the inspectors of each of the school 
election districts. The expense of such ballots maust be met by 
the town board of education. 

4. An election of a member of a town board of education shall 
not be declared invalid or illegal because of the use of ballots which 
do not conform to the requirements of the statutes, or to the pro- 
viosions of the education law, provided the intent of the elector 
may be ascertained from the use of the irregular ballots voted and it 
appears that such use was not fraudulent. 

Inspectors of Election. — The board of education must appoint 
three inspectors of election for each of the school election districts 
into which the town has been divided. It is the duty of the clerk 
of the board to give notice of appointment to the persons who have 
been thus appointed. If a person refuses to accept such appoint- 
. ment, the board of education may appoint some other qualified voter 
of the school election district to fill the vacancy. Before opening- 
the election the inspectors should organize by electing one of their 
number as chairman and one as poll clerk. Each inspector is 
entitled to receive a compensation of $3 per day, to be paid for out 
of the funds provided for the general management of the schools 
of the town. 

Conduct of School Elections — Laws Controlling. — Except as 
otherwise provided in the Education Law, the town school elec- 
tions shall be conducted so far as may be in accordance with the 
provisions of the General Election Law. 



I04 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Ballot Boxes. — It is the duty of the board of education to 
provide ballot boxes for each of the school election districts in the 
town. These boxes should conform as nearly as may be to the 
ballot boxes used at general elections. 

Who May Vote. — i. All persons whose names appear upon the 
list of qualified electors as residing in the school election district 
shall be given ballots and shall be permitted to vote. 

2. A person whose name does not appear upon the list of quali- 
fied voters who presents evidence satisfactory to the inspectors 
showing that he is a qualified elector of the school election district 
shall be permitted to vote if such person makes the declaration pre- 
scribed for persons who have been challenged. 

3. All electors entitled to vote who are in the place at which the 
election is being held at the time scheduled for closing the polls shall 
be permitted to vote before such polls are closed. When a voter 
presents his ballot to the inspector such ballot must be folded so as 
to conceal the names of the candidates for whom he has voted or 
the way he has voted upon a proposition or question before the 
meeting for determination. 

Poll List. — The inspector designated as poll clerk shall keep 
a poll list controlling the names of all persons who vote at the elec- 
tion for either candidates or propositions or questions voted on at 
the meeting. 

Challenges. — A person named upon the list of electors as 
having been challenged prior to the day of the school election must 
also be challenged at such election before a ballot is given to him. 

Any qualified elector may challenge the right of a person to vote 
at the time such person requests a ballot. A person who is chal- 
lenged or who requests the privilege of voting, and whose name is 
not upon the list of qualified voters, must make the following decla- 
ration, prescribed to him by the chairman of the board of inspectors : 
" I declare and affirm that I have been for the thirty days last past 
an actual resident of* this town and that I am qualified to vote at this 
meeting." 

A person who makes this declaration must be permitted to vote. 
A person who shall refuse to make such declaration shall not be 
permitted to vote at such meeting. 

Penalty for False Declaration and Illegal Voting. — i. A person 
who wilfully makes a false declaration as to his right to vote at such 
school meeting is guilty of a misdemeanor. 



TOWN SCHOOL MEETING IO5 

2, A person who is not legally qualified to vote at such school 
meeting, but who shall vote at it, shall be subject to a penalty of 
fifty dollars, which may be recovered by suit brought by the board 
of education. A fine thus obtained is for the benefit of the schools 
of the town. 

Canvass of Votes. — As soon as the polls of the election close 
the inspectors shall compare the number of ballots found in the 
ballot box with the number of persons recorded on the poll list as 
having voted for candidates or for propositions or questions before 
the meeting. If the number of ballots in the box exceeds the num- 
ber of names recorded on the poll list, all ballots must be replaced in 
the boxes from which they were taken without being unfolded. 
These ballots should then be thoroughly mingled in such boxes. 
One of the inspectors designated by the board for that purpose shall 
then publicly draw out as many ballots as shall be equal to the num- 
ber of excess ballots. The ballots so drawn out shall be placed in 
an envelope, without being unfolded, and such envelope shall then 
be sealed and endorsed with a statement of the number of such bal- 
lots withdrawn and shall be signed by the inspector who withdrew 
such ballots. This envelope must be delivered to the clerk of the 
board of education and be preserved by him for a period of at least 
one year. The board of inspectors shall then count such ballots, 
keeping tally of the same and preparing a statement showing the 
number of votes cast for the several candidates voted for at the 
election. The same procedure shall also be taken in reference to 
any que^stion or proposition voted upon at such meeting. The state- 
ment prepared by the inspectors must also show the number of bal- 
lots which were declared void or defective and the number of blank 
ballots cast at the election. This statement of the votes cast shall 
be signed by the inspectors in each election district and delivered 
to the clerk of the board of education on the day following such 
election. 

Void Ballots. — Ballots which are declared void and not 
counted shall be placed in an envelope which shall be sealed, properly 
endorsed, and signed by the inspectors. This envelope shall be 
filed with the clerk of the board of education and preserved by him 
for a period of at least one year. 

Preservation of Ballots. — After the inspectors have properly 
counted the ballots and prepared their statment, such ballots must 
be replaced in the ballot boxes. Each box must be securely locked, 



I06 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

sealed, and deposited with the clerk of the board of education. The 
unused ballots shall be placed in a sealed package and returned to 
the clerk of the board of education at the same time when the ballot 
boxes are delivered to him. 

Canvass by Board of Education. — The town board of educa- 
tion shall meet at its usual place of meeting at eight o'clock p. m. on 
the day following such election and shall then examine and tabulate 
the statement of the results of the election in the several districts 
of the town. The board shall determine the number of votes cast 
for and against each candidate and for and against each proposition 
or question voted upon at such meeting. The board shall then 
declare the result of the canvass of the votes in each election district 
and the candidates receiving a plurality of the votes cast respectively 
for the several offices shall be declared elected. The clerk of the 
board of education shall record the result of the election as 
announced by the board of education in the minutes of its meeting. 

Notice to Successful Candidates. — Within twenty-four hours 
after the result of an election has been declared by the board of 
education, the clerk of such board shall serve a written notice upon 
each person declared to be elected as a member of the board of 
education. This notice may be delivered either prsonally or by 
mail. A person upon whom such notice is served shall be deemed 
to have accepted the office unless he files a written refusal to accept 
the same with the clerk of the board within a period^ of five days 
after the service of such notice. 

Election Disputes — How Determined. — The Commissioner 
of Education is authorized to determine all questions in disputes in 
relation to an election of a member of a board of education or the 
determination of any other question by such meeting on an appeal 
properly brought before him for that purpose. The Commissioner 
of Education also possesses the authority to order a new school 
election if in his discretion he deems it desirable or necessary, 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

When is the annual town school meeting held? For what purpose? 
Where? When may a town be divided into school election districts? By 
whom? During what hours must the poll of an election be open? What 
notice of an annual meeting is given? By whom? In what manner? When 
may special meetings be held? What notice is required? Where? What poll 
list must be prepared? By whom? Where must it be filed? Who may exam- 
ine it? When? How is the oportunity afforded? By whom is a poll list 



REVIEW QUESTIONS IO7 

revised and corrected? When? How may it be corrected? By whom is it 
finally revised? How are written challenges offered? With whom is the 
corrected poll list filed? When? How are candidates nominated? With 
whom is the petition filed ? How many petitioners are required ? Who must 
provide ballots? Describe how ballots must be printed? How may special 
propositions be voted upon? How many ballots must be provided? To 
whom are they delivered? When? What is the effect if official ballots are 
not used? How are inspectors of election chosen? How many? How do 
they organize? How are elections generally controlled? By whom are ballot 
boxes provided? Who may vote at an election? How may a person vote 
whose name is not on the poll list? Who may vote after the hour for closing 
the poll has arrived? What poll list is kept? Who may challenge the right 
of a person to vote? When? Is a written challenge sufficient? Who is 
required to make a declaration before voting? What is the penalty for a 
false declaration and illegal voting? What is the penalty for illegal voting 
without making false declaration? Explain the general method of canvassing 
votes. What is done with void ballots? What other ballots must be pre- 
served? How? What return is made to the board of education? What 
canvass does the board of education make? When? In what manner ? How 
is the result recorded? What notice is given to successful candidates? By 
whom? How are election disputes determined? 



CHAPTER XIII 

UNION FREE-SCHOOL DISTRICT OFFICERS 

[Articles 9, 10 and 11] 

Application of Township Law. — The township law, chapter 328 
of the Laws of 1917, does not apply to union free-school districts 
having a population of 1,500 or more, or employing 15 teachers or 
more. These union free-school districts continue under the control 
of the provisions of the education law which apply to union free- 
school districts. The officers of such districts and their powers and 
duties are the same as they have been and are not modified in any 
way by the township law of 1917. 

Board of Education — Number. — The number of members on 
a boa,rd of education in each union free-school district cannot be 
less than three, nor more than nine. The voters of the district at 
the meeting at which the first election occurs should decide on the 
number to be elected. 

Date of Election. — The election of members of a board of 
education in a union free-school district which is not subject to the 
provisions of the township law and whose limits do not correspond 
with the limits of an incorporated village must be held on one of 
three dates, as follows: 

1. At the annual meeting on the first Tuesday in May. 

2. At the annual meeting on the first Tuesday in August in cases 
where the date of such annual meeting has been duly changed as 
hereinbefore explained. 

3. On the Wednesday following the date of the annual meeting 
in districts having more than 300 school children where action has 
been taken at the annual meeting fixing such date for the election 
as hereinafted explained. 

The election of trustees in a union free-school district whose 
boundaries do coincide with those of an incorporated village or 
a city, must occur on the date of the annual charter election of such 
incorporated village or city. The trustees in these districts should 
be elected in the same manner as the other officers of such incorpo- 

108 



UNION FREE-SCHOOL DISTRICT OFFICERS IO9 

rated village or city are elected. The ballots used in such election 
must be separated from the ballots for the other officers to be chosen 
at such election and must be endorsed " School Trustees." 

Method of Election. — These officers must be chosen by ballot. 
The ballots may be printed or written or partly printed and partly 
written. Ballot-boxes should be provided for the purpose. In- 
spectors should be chosen by the meeting, who should receive all 
the ballots, deposit them in the ballot-boxes, and, after the polls 
have closed, canvass the votes and announce the result. The 
candidate receiving a majority of all votes cast is duly elected. 

Classification of Trustees. — When a union free-school district 
is organized, the officers chosen at the first election shall be divided 
into three classes to be known as the first, the second, and the third 
class. The first class shall hold office for one year from the next 
annual meeting, if the district is one whose boundaries do not coin- 
cide with those of an incorporated village or a city; and if the dis- 
trict is one whose boundaries do so coincide, then such first class 
shall hold office for one year from the date on which the next annual 
charter election of such incorporated village or city occurs. The 
second and the third class shall likewise hold office for two and 
three years respectively from these dates, according to the bounda- 
ries of the district. 

Term of Office. — After the expiration of the term of office of 
trustees elected at the first meeting of a union free-school' district 
newly organized, the term of office of trustees of such district is 
three years from the datfe of their election. A year in this sense 
means from the first day of August to the thirty-first day of July 
following. 

Trustees Form a Board of Education. — The trustees of union 
free-school districts constitute the boards of education for those 
districts. The board of education of a district is known and desig- 
nated as the " Board of Education of district number of 

the town of " 

Eligibility of Trustees. — In order to be eligible to hold the 
office of trustee, or to become a member of a board of education 
in a union free-school district, a person must be a citizen of the 
United States, and a voter of the district in which such person is 
elected, and must also be able to read and write. Women possess- 
ing these qualifications are eligible the same as men. Not more than 



no NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

one member of a family can serve on a board of education in any 
district at the same time, 

A district superintendent or supervisor is not eligible to be a 
member of a board of education. Hence, if a member of a board 
of education should accept either of these offices he would thus 
vacate his office as such member. 

Vacancies — Hov/ Filled, etc. — Vacancies in boards of educa- 
tion in any union free-school district may occur by death, by 
resignation, by refusal to serve, by removal from district, or by 
removal from office. When a vacancy does occur from any of 
these causes, the board of education should fill such vancancy at 
once by appointment. If the board of education should fail to fill 
such vacancy within thirty days from the date on which it occurred 
and if such vacancy is not filled by special election of the district 
within that time, the district superintendent having jurisdiction may 
appoint a qualified person to fill such vancancy. The Commissioner 
of Education has the authority to order a special election to fill a 
vacancy in a board in any district, and when such special election 
has been ordered, the vacancy shall not be supplied in any other 
manner. 

Removal from Office, — A board of education has the authority 
to remove any member of the board for" official misconduct. The 
member charged with such conduct should be furnished with a 
written copy of specific charges, at least ten days before the date 
fixed for the hearing. The accused member should also be allowed 
a fair and impartial opportunity to refute the charges preferred 
against him. 

A member of a board of education may also be removed by the 
Commissioner of Education for sufficient cause. 

In this procedure also, the accused member must receive notice 
of the charges standing against him and must have a fair chance 
to refute or disprove them. A willful failure to perform any duty 
required of him by the Commissioner of Education or a lack of 
proper diligence in obeying an order of such Commissioner, or any 
other willful violation or neglect of duty is sufficient cause for 
removal from office by such Commissioner. 

Boards Bodies Corporate, — All boards of education are cor- 
porate bodies, and all school districts municipal corporations. 

Annual Meetings of Boards of Education, — The annual meet- 
ing of a board of education of a union free-school district whose 



UNION FREE-SCHOOL DISTRICT OFFICERS III 

boundaries do not correspond to those of an incorporated village, is 
held on the first Tuesday in August of each year, except in districts 
in which the annual meeting is held on the first Tuesday in August, 
in which case the annual meeting of the board of education of such 
district shall be held on the second Tuesday in August. 

But the annual meeting of a board of education of a district 
whose boundaries correspond to those of an incorporated village is 
held on the first Tuesday following the date on which the annual 
charter election of such village is held. 

Boards Select Their President. — At the fi^st meeting of a 
board of education and at each annual meeting thereafter, such board 
shall elect one of their number president. 

Appointment of Clerk of the Board. — The board of education 
of a district whose boundaries do not coincide with those of an 
incorporated village may appoint one of their number, or some other 
qualified voter of the district, who is not a teacher employed therein, 
clerk of the board of education. The clerk must perform the clerical 
work of the district and of the board, and is entitled to the com- 
pensation fixed by the district meeting. If the district meeting fails 
to fix the compensation of the clerk, the board of education should 
fix it. 

If a vacancy occurs in the office of clerk, such vacancy may be 
supplied by appointment by the board of education. 

In a union free-school district whose boundaries coincide with 
those of an incorporated village, the clerk of such village usually acts 
as clerk of the board of education. 

Appointment of Treasurer and Collector. — The board of edu- 
cation of a union free-school district whose boundaries do not cor- 
respond to those of an incorporated village, has authority to appoint 
a district treasurer and a collector. These officers hold their ap- 
pointments subject to the pleasure of the board. The treasurer is 
to hold and disburse upon the orders of the board the moneys of 
the district. The collector should collect the taxes on all tax-lists 
placed in his hands for that purpose and pay over such money to 
the treasurer. 

In a district whose boundaries do coincide with those of an 
incorporated village, the treasurer and the collector of such village 
act as the treasurer and the collector of such district. 

Bonds of Treasurer and Collector. — The treasurer and the 
collector shall each within ten days after written notice of their 



112 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

appointment, and before entering upon the discharge of their duties, 
execute and deliver to the board of education in the amount which 
such board may require, a bond with proper penalties and sureties 
for the faithful discharge of their duties. 

Failure to Execute Bonds. — If either the treasurer or the 
collector should fail to execute the required bond within the speci- 
fied time, the office becomes vacant and the board should fill it by 
appointing another person. 

Librarian. — Boards of education have authority to appoint 
from time to time such librarians as in their judgment are necessary 
to take proper care of the libraries of the district. 

Who May Vote for OfBcers Jn Union Free-School Districts. — 
— Where no provision is made by special enactment, the general 
law defines the qualifications of voters at union free-school district 
meetings. (See chapter on "Qualifications of voters.") Persons 
coming within these provisions may vote for officers at elections in 
these districts. 

The right of women to vote for the election of officers in a union 
free-school district whose boundaries coincide with those of an 
incorporated village, is frequently claimed. The charters of vil- 
lages, or the special school acts governing the schools therein, in 
some cases contain a provision defining who may vote for members 
of the board of education. In such cases this special provision 
governs instead of the general law, and by it women might be 
debarred from voting. A provision that persons entitled to vote 
for members of assembly in such villages would be qualified to vote 
for school officers, would exclude women; but in the absence of 
any such special provision women, as well as men, may vote for 
school officers, if they possess the requisite qualifications. 

Changing Number of Trustees. — i. If fifteen resident tax- 
payers of a union free-school district whose limits correspond to 
those of an incorporated village petition their board of education 
for a special meeting to decide to change the number of members 
of such board such special meeting must be called at least 30 days 
prior to the annual charter election. If the proposition to increase 
the number of members is adopted, such additional members shall 
be elected at the next annual election. If the proposition to decrease 
the number should be adopted no member shall thereafter be elected 
until the number of members is less than the number determined 
upon at such special meeting. 



UNION FREE-SCHOOL DISTRICT OFFICERS II3 

2. In a union free-school district whose boundaries are not coin- 
cident with those of an incorporated village the board of education 
must include in its notice of the annual meeting a statement that the 
proposition to increase or to decrease the number of trustees will bet- 
voted upon at such annual meeting if fifteen voters of the district 
file a request therefor with such board. If the board fails or 
refuses to give such notice, it may be given in the manner directed 
by the Commissioner of Education. The question cannot be legally 
voted upon unless the notice is given. 

If it is decided at the annual meeting to increase the number of 
trustees, the meeting should elect the additional number agreed upon 
and divide such number into classes whose terms expire in one, two 
and three years respectively. 

If it is decided to decrease the number of such trustees no trustee 
shall be elected until the number is reduced to that determined up>oii 
at the annual meeting. 

ELECTION OF OFFICERS IN UNION FREE-SCHOOL DISTRICTS HAVING 
MORE THAN 3OO CHILDREN 

Action of District. — The education law provides that in a 
union free-school district having more than 300 children of school 
age, which fact must be' shown by the last annual report of the 
board of education to the district superintendent, a majority of 
the qualified voters at any annual meeting or at a special meeting 
called for that purpose, may decide by vote to be ascertained by tak- 
ing and recording the ayes and noes, that the election of trustees 
shall be held on the Wednesday next following the date fixed by 
law for holding the annual meeting of such district. Until such 
decision of the district shall be changed, the time for holding the 
election of officers of such district shall occur on such Wednesday, 
between the hours of twelve o'clock noon and four o'clock p. u., 
and the trustees may by a resolution extend the time of such elec- 
tion until sunset. 

This provision of law is superseded by the provisions of the 
township law of 1917 and in addition to having 300 children of 
school age such district must also have a population of 1,500 or 
employ 15 teachers or more so as to be exempt from the provisions 
of the township law. No union free-school district subject to the 
provisions of the township law may hold district meetings. 
8 



114 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

When Notice is Required. — When the holding of such elec- 
tion is to be at some place other than the public schoolhouse, the 
trustees shall give notice of the place at which the election is to be 
held, at least one week before the time for holding- such election. 
This notice must be given by publishing the same in some newspaper 
of the district or by posting it in three conspicuous places in the 
district. 

The election of members of the board of education in these 
districts must not be coun founded with the annual meeting. The 
annual meeting of such districts must occur on the first Tuesday in 
May in each year, as required by law, unless the date for the annual 
meeting has been duly changed to the first Tuesday in August as 
hereinbefore explained. All the business of the district to be 
transacted at the meeting of such district must be transacted at the 
annual meeting. The election of members of the hoard of educa- 
thn only, must occur on the Wednesday following the annual 
meeting and no other business can be transacted at. that time. 

Inspectors of Election. — -The board of education shall act as 
inspectors of election. If a majority of the members of the board 
should not be present at the time the polls should open, those mem- 
bers present may appoint any of the legal voters of the district who 
are present to act as inspectors in the absence of the members of the 
board. If none of the members of the board are present at the 
time the polls should open, the legal voters present may choose three 
of their own number to act as inspectors. 

Record of Voters. — The clerk of the board of education is 
required by law to keep a record in a book provided for that pur- 
pose of the names of all voters who deposit their ballots at such 
elections. 

Refusal to Keep Record. — Any such clerk who shall refuse to 
keep such record or who shall neglect to perform his duties in this 
respect shall forfeit a sum of twenty-five dollars, to be sued for by 
the supervisor of the town. 

Challenge of Voters. — Any qualified voter at such elections 
may challenge the right of any person to vote whom he has reason 
to think is not entitled to vote at such election. Any person thus 
challenged must make the following declaration before his ballot 
can be accepted : " I do declare and affirm that I am and have been 
for thirty days last past an actual resident of this school district 
and that I am legally qualified to vote at this election." 



UNION FREE-SCHOOL DISTRICT OFFICERS II5 

Upon a challenged party's making such declaration, the inspectors 
of election must accept his ballot. 

Penalty for Illegal Voting.— Any person, who, being chal- 
lenged, shall willfully make a false declaration of his right to vote, 
is guilty of a misdemeanor. Any person not legally qualified who 
shall vote at such election or district meeting, without being chal- 
lenged, shall forfeit the sum of ten dollars, to be sued for by the 
supervisor of the town for the benefit of the school or schools of the 
district. 

Ballot-Boxes. — The board of education should provide at the 
expense of the district suitable ballot-boxes, in which the ballots of 
voters shall be deposited. 

Ballots, — These officers must be elected by ballot. The ballots 
used must be either printed or written, or partly printed and partly 
written. 

Canvass of Votes. — The inspectors shall count the votes cast, 
after the polls have closed. If the number of ballots exceeds the 
number of names on the poll-li^ kept by the clerk, the inspectors 
shall withdraw ballots enough to make them correspond. The in- 
spectors shall then count the votes and' announce the number cast 
for each candidate. Those receiving a plurality of the votes cast, 
are elected to the various offices for which they received votes. 
The clerk should make a record of the result announced by the 
inspectors. 

Special Election. — Whenever the time passes on which an 
election should be held, without the election's taking place, the 
board of education may call a special meeting for such election. 
If the board fails to call such election within ten days after such 
time has passed, the district superintendent having jurisdiction, or 
the Commissioner of Education, may order any inhabitant of the 
district to give notice of a special meeting for such election. This 
notice must be given by being published in two newspapers of the 
district once each week for four weeks, and if two newspapers are 
not published in the district, but one is, the notice may be published 
in such paper. If no paper is published in the district, then such 
notice must be posted in at least twenty of the most pubHc places 
in the district at least twenty days prior to the date on which the 
meeting is to be held. 

Terms of Officers Chosen at Special Election. — The officers 
chosen at a special election shall serve three years from the date of 



Il6 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

such election and until their successors shall have been elected and 
qualified. 

Settlement of Election Disputes. — All disputes relating to the 
regularity of these elections and to any acts of the inspectors or 
clerk should be referred to the Commissioner of Education for 
settlement. His decision in such matters is final. 

Limitation of These Provisions. — These provisions do not 
apply to union free-school districts in cities, nor to any union free- 
school district whose boundaries coincide with those of an incorpo- 
rated village. Nor can such provisions apply to any union free- 
school district organized by a special act in which the time and 
method of electing officers in such district shall be fixed by a special 
provision which differs from the general law. Nor do these pro- 
visions apply to any of the union free-school districts of the coun- 
ties of Suffolk, Chenango, Warren, and St. Lawrence. The elec- 
tion of officers in any union free-school district of any of these 
counties, whose boundaries do not coincide with those of an incor- 
porated village must be held on the date of the annual meeting, 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

How many members on a board of education in a union free-school dis- 
trict ? How is the number determined ? On what three dates may the election 
of members on a board education in union free-school districts whose 
boundaries do not coincide with the boundaries of an incorporated village or 
a city occur? When in districts whose boundaries do thus coincide? In the 
latter case how are such trustees elected? What is the requirement relative 
to ballots? In all cases how must trustees be chosen? What kind of ballot? 
must be used? How are inspectors chosen at such election? What are their 
duties? How should the first trustee of a union free-school district be classi- 
fied? For what period does each class hold office? What is the regular term 
of office? What is one year in this meaning? 

What constitutes a board of education? How is a board of education 
named? Who are eligible to membership on a board of education? Are 
women eligible? When? How many members of a family may serve on the 
same board? Is a district superintendent eligible? A supervisor? If a 
member of a board of education should accept either of these offices, what 
would be the result? How may vacancies on a board occur? When a 
vacancy does occur how should it be filled ? Who may order a special election 
to fill such vacancy? If it is not filled by the board of education within 
twenty days and if a special meeting is not called within that time, how may- 
such vacancy be filled ? 

For what reasons may a board remove any of its members? What arc 
the proceedings in such cases? What privileges should be allowed thf 



REVIEW QUESTIONS II7 

accused member? By what other authority may a member of a board be 
removed? What are considered sufficient causes for removal? What are 
the proceedings in such cases? When is the annual meeting of a board of 
education held? What is the exception to this date? How is the president 
of a board of education chosen? When? 

How is a clerk chosen? What are the qualifications of a clerk? What are 
a clerk's duties? Who determines the compensation of a clerk? Who is 
clerk of the board of education of a union free-school district whose 
boundaries coincide with those of an incorporated village or a city? 

How is a treasurer chosen in a district whose boundaries coincide with 
those of an incorporated village or a city? A collector? Who are eligible to 
these offices? For what period are they appointed? What is the duty of the 
treasurer? Of the collector? What bond must each of these officers give? 
Within what period? For what amount? What is the effect if these bonds 
are not given? How are such vacancies filled? What is the duty of a board 
in relation to librarians? 

Who are entitled to vote for officers in union free-school districts? In 
what cases may women vote for these officers? In what cases are they not 
entitled to vote? Explain fully how the number of trustees may be changed 
in each class of union free-school districts. 

What union free-school districts may elect officers on the Wednesday fol- 
lowing the annual meeting? When? Between what hours must such election 
occur? Until what time may the election be extended? Where is such 
election held? When may it be held elsewhere? What notice must be given 
of such change of place? What business only can be transacted at such 
election? When must the annual meeting of such district be held? 

Who act as inspectors at such election? If a majority of the' board are 
not present at the opening of the polls, how are such vacancies filled? If 
none of the members of the board are present, how are inspectors chosen? 
What poll-list should be kept? By whom? What is the penalty for refusal 
to serve in this capacity? 

Who may offer a challenge at such election? What affirmation must the 
challenged person make? Upon his making such affirmation what must the 
inspectors do? What is the penalty for making a false declaration? What is 
the penalty for illegal voting when not challenged? How is such fine col- 
lected? For what purpose should it be used? 

By whom should ballot-boxes be supplied? How must officers be elected 
at these elections? What kind of ballots may be used? Describe how the 
YOtes cast should be counted? 

When should a board of education call a meeting for a special election? 
When may a district superintendent order such election? The Commissioner 
of Education? What notice must be given of such election? For what period 
are the officers elected at such special meeting chosen? How are all disputes 
relating to such elections settled? To what districts do not these provisions 
for election of officers apply? 



CHAPTER XIV 

BOARD OF EDUCATION, UNION FREE-SCHOOL DISTRICT — POWERS AND 

DUTIES 

[Article ii] 

Statement. — The provisions of this chapter apply to all union 
free-school districts which are not subject to the provisions of the 
township law, chapter 328, Laws of 1917- 

Adopt By-Laws for its Government. — A board of education 
has legal authority to adopt such by-laws and rules for its govern- 
ment . as it shall deem necessary to discharge properly the duties 
imposed upon it by law. 

Adopt Regulations for Schools. — A board has authority also 
to adopt such rules and regulations as it shall deem wise and neces- 
sary for the promotion of the educational interests of the district, 
for the preservation of order and discipline in the schools, and for 
the protection of the district's property. 

While a board has authority to adopt general rules to govern a 
school and to aid in the discipline thereof, such authority must not 
be construed as giving the board absolute power to control the dis- 
cipline and order of the school. General rules may be adopted 
by the board, but the teacher is the authority to execute -such rules, 
and may determine a mode of punishment not in conflict with the 
rules of the board. A teacher has authority also to estabhsh such 
rules for the preservation of order as are not in conflict with the 
rules adopted by the board. 

Courses of Study. — It is the duty of boards of education to 
arrange courses of study for the schools under their jurisdiction, to 
determine in what manner pupils shall be graded or classified, and 
to determine the basis upon which pupils shall be promoted from 
grade to grade, or from one department to another department. 

By special provision of law, boards of education are required to 
provide for instruction in physiology and hygiene, with special ref- 
erence to the effects of alcoholic stimulants and narcotics upon the 

118 



BOARD OF EDUCATION POWERS AND DUTIES 1 19 

human system, and in the humane treatment and protection of birds 
and animals. 

Prescribe Text-Books. — They are to prescribe the text-books 
to be used in the schools under their charge, and to require a 
uniformity in the use of such books. They shall also furnish 
text-books to poor pupils out of any moneys provided for that 
purpose, and free text-books for all pupils when funds have been 
voted therefor. 

Purchase Sites. — When directed to do so by a district meet- 
ing, boards of education should purchase a site or sites or an 
addition to a site or sites for schoolhouses. 

Erect and Repair Buildings. — They should construct a school- 
house or schoolhouses when directed to do so by a district meeting, 
and should keep the school buildings in good repair. 

Purchase Furniture, Apparatus, etc. — A board of education 
has the authority to purchase all necessary furniture, apparatus, 
fuel, and other necessaries, and to keep the furniture and apparatus 
in good repair. 

May Hire School Rooms and Furnish Them. — When the 
rooms in a schoolhouse are overcrowded and the capacity of a 
schoolhouse is insufficient to accommodate all the pupils, or when 
the schoolhouse has been injured or destroyed in any way so as to 
render it unfit .for use, the board of education may hire suitable 
rooms in which to conduct the school, and may fit up and furnish 
such rooms in a suitable manner, for the purpose of conducting 
school therein. 

Insure School Property. — The board should insure all school 
buildings and appendages thereof owned by the district, the furni- 
ture and apparatus, and the hbrary, in a company created under 
the laws of the State or authorized to do business in the State. 
The board has power to raise the premiums by tax upon the district. 

Custody of Property. — The custody and possession of all 
public school buildings, sites, lots, furniture, books, apparatus and 
all school property, and the title to the same are vested, in union 
free-school districts, in the board of education in each of such 
districts. For any and all purposes this property is exempt from 
taxation. 

May Sell Property and Exchange Real Estate. — When a board 
of education is so authorized by the qualified voters of any district, 
it may sell at such price and upon such terms as directed, any 



I20 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

former lot or site and any real estate the title of which is vested 
in the board, and any buildings or appurtenances thereon. The 
board has authority also to convey any such property by deed and 
to execute the same, which may be done by a majority of the mem- 
bers of the board or by some officer or member of the board duly 
empowered by the board to make such conveyance. Any money 
realized from the sale of such property must be applied by the 
board as directed in a resolution by the voters of the district. 

The board may also, when so directed, exchange any real estate 
belonging to the district for the purpose of improving or changing 
the schoolhouse site. 

May Hold Real Estate in Trust. — A board of education may 
take and hold any real estate for the use of the schools or any 
department of the schools of their district, transmitted to the district 
by gift, grant, bequest or devise; or any gift, legacy, or annuity 
given or bequeathed to said board. Such board must apply the 
same, or the interest or proceeds thereof, as directed by the donor 
or testator. 

Control of Schools, — Boards of education of union free-schools 
have in all respects the superintendence, management, and control of 
such schools subject to the supervision of the Commissioner of 
Education. In such control and management a board must be 
governed by law, and by the general powers given the Commissioner 
of Education. 

Establishment of Academic Department. — The power to 
establish an academic department is vested in the board of educa- 
tion. This may be established whenever the board deems it neces- 
sary. Such department must be approved by the Board of Regents. 

Admission of Non-Resident Pupils to Academic or Other 
Departrnents. — The admission of non-resident pupils to the 
academic or other departments shall be under the regulations adopted 
by the board of education, and the fee to be charged such students 
for this privilege shall also be regulated by the board. Whenever 
the parent or the guardian of non-resident pupils shall be taxed 
for school purposes, because of property owned by either of them 
and assessed in the district at which such non-resident pupils attend 
school, the amount of tax thus paid must be deducted from the 
tuition fee to be paid. 

Colored Schools. — A board of education has authority under 
the law to maintain a separate school for colored children when 



BOARD OF EDUCATION POWERS AND DUTIES 121 

authorized by a vote of the district. No person may be excluded 
from a pubHc school on account of race or color. The maintenance 
of these schools is, therefore, unnecessary. (For history of legis- 
lation on this subject, see loth edition of this work.) 

Employment of Teachers. — It is the duty of a board to employ 
all teachers required for the schools under their jurisdiction and 
the departments thereof. Such teachers must be legally qualified, 
as required by law. No teacher who is related by blood or mar- 
riage to any member of a board can be employed as teacher by such 
board, except upon the consent of two-thirds of the members of the 
board, and the fact of such consent must be determined at a board 
meeting and entered on the proceedings of the board. 

It is the duty of each board at the time of employment to deliver 
or cause to be delivered to each teacher, a written contract, signed 
by the members of the board or by some person duly authorized to 
represent the board. This contract should express the terms of 
agreement between the board and the teacher, and should be explicit 
as to the amount of compensation, term of employment, the times 
when salary shall be paid, and the grade of teaching or department 
in which the teacher is to be employed. The salary must be paid 
under the law as often as at the end of each calendar month of the 
term of employment. Boards are also directed to pay the wages 
of teachers out of money appropriated for that purpose. 

Removal of Teachers. — A board of education cannot remove 
a teacher during his or her term of employment except for neglect 
of duty, incapacity to teach, immoral conduct, or other cause 
approved by the Commissioner of Education. 

May Fill Vacancies on Board — May Remove Members. — 
The board of education may fill any vacancy which may arise on 
such board. A board may also remove any of its members for 
official misconduct. But first, the board must serve on the member 
thus charged, a copy of the written charges, which must be specific ; 
and this copy must be served on such members at least ten days 
before the date fixed for the hearing. The accused must also be 
allowed a full and fair opportunity to refute the charges thus made. 

Water-closets, Stairways, etc. — It is the duty of a board of 
education to provide two suitable and convenient water-closets for 
each of the schools under their charge, as required by law, and the 
board must keep them in a clean and wholesome condition. Any 
tax involved for this purpose may be levied and assessed upon the 



122 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

district without a vote at a district meeting. (See chapter on " Sites 
and school buildings.") 

The board ,shall also cause to be erected and maintained on the 
outside of all school buildings which are more than two stories high, 
proper stairways with doorways leading thereto from each floor 
above the first, for use in case of fire. The tax for this purpose 
may likewise be levied by the board without a vote of the district. 

General Powers and Duties. — By provision of law, boards of 
education possess all the powers and privileges and are subject to 
the same duties in relation to common schools or common-school 
departments in any union free school in said district which are 
possessed by the trustees of common schools or to which such trus- 
tees are subject under the school law and which are not inconsistent 
with the provisions of law governing union free schools. When 
an academic department has been established by a board, the board 
possesses the same powers that are held by the trustees of academies. 

Board May Appoint Superintendent of Schools. — In any union 
free-school district which has a population of five thousand or more, 
the board of education may appoint a superintendent of schools. 
The population of such district shall be ascertained by an enumera- 
tion of the inhabitants therein under the direction of the Com- 
missioner of Education ; the expense of such enumeration shall be 
a charge upon the district. Such superintendent shall be under 
the direction of the. board of education and the board shall prescribe 
his duties and fix his compensation. He may be removed from office 
by a majority vote of the board. 

A district thus employing a superintendent is entitled to receive 
from the State, in its apportionment of the State school moneys, 
the additional sum of eight hundred dollars. 

Record of Proceedings. — Boards are required to keep an 
accurate record of all of their proceedings in books provided for 
that purpQse, and these records must be open to the inspection of 
qualified voters of the district at all reasonable hours. 

Must Publish Statement of Receipts and Disbursements. — 
Boards of education are required by law to publish each year at 
least twenty days immediately preceding the annual meeting of the 
district a full and complete detailed account of all moneys received 
by the board or by the treasurer and of each item of purchase or 
expense and the amount thereof. This must be published in a 
newspaper printed in the district ; but if no newspaper is printed in 



BOARD OF EDUCATION — POWERS AND DUTIES I23 

the district, the statement must be posted in at least five pubhc places 
in the district. 

Board Should Report Estimated Expenses. — The board 
should report to the annual meeting an estimate in writing- of the 
money needed for school purposes for the ensuing year. This 
report should state the purposes for which the money will be needed 
and the amount for each of such purposes. Such statement could 
also be presented at a special meeting called for that purpose. 

Vote on Taxes for Such Estimate. — In a union free-school 
district whose boundaries do not coincide with those of an incorpo- 
rated village, the annual or special meeting, upon receiving such 
estimate, should vote upon levying taxes to meet such estimated 
expenditures. If demanded by any voter, a separate vote should 
■be taken upon each item. The meeting may increase the amount 
for any item, and may decrease the amount for any item, except for 
teachers' wages and contingent expenses. 

Board May Levy Tax Without Vote. — If a meeting should 
neglect or refuse to vote the estimated amount for teachers' salaries, 
the board, after applying all available funds therefor, may levy a 
tax upon the district for the balance of the money needed, without 
a vote of the district to authorize it. The same action may be taken 
by the board on the amount estimated for contingent expenses. 

Settlement of Disputes on Contingent Expenses. — All dis- 
putes that may arise as to what contingent expenses are, should be 
referred to the Commissioner of Education and his decision shall 
be final. 

City or Village Authorities May Levy Tax. — Boards of educa- 
tion in union free-school districts whose boundaries coincide with 
those of an incorporated village, should prepare a written state- 
ment, addressed to the corporate authorities of such village, show- 
ing the amount of money necessary for teachers' wages and for the 
ordinary contingent expenses of the district. The statement should 
be specific, showing the several items and the amount of money 
therefor for which it is proposed to make an expenditure. The 
corporate authorities, upon the receipt of such statement, should 
levy a tax upon the real and personal property of their village, in 
the same manner that taxes are levied for the expenses of the 
municipal government, and for the same amount that the board of 
education set forth in their statement as necessary for school pur- 



124 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

poses. Such corporate authorities have no discretion in the matter 
whatever, but are required to levy such tax. 

Whenever the voters of such union free-school districts shall have 
decided at a special meeting, duly convened, to expend any amount 
for a new site, an addition to the present site, or for the erection 
of school buildings, or for apparatus or fixtures, or for any other 
purpose for the welfare of the school system of such district, the 
said corporate authorities must also raise such amount by tax in 
the same manner as for any other corporate purpose. 

Regular Meeting. — Boards of education are required by law 
to hold regular meetings at least once each quarter, and they may 
hold them oftener. 

The meetings of a board shall be public and any legal voter of 
the district may be present. Boards may, however, hold executive 
sessions, and at such sessions only members of the board or those 
invited by the board shall be present. 

Visitation of Schools. — Boards shall appoint from their mem- 
bers visiting committees, whose duties shall be to visit the schools 
and departments under their supervision at least twice each quarter 
and to present a report to the board at its next regular meeting after 
any such visits have been made. 

Money to be Held by City or Village Treasurer. — All moneys 
raised for the support of union free schools in any incorporated 
village, or apportioned to such schools from the income of the 
literature, the common-school, or the United States deposit funds, 
or from any other source, must be paid into the treasury of such 
village. This fund must be kept by the treasurer separate from all 
other funds in his possession. The treasurer is also required to 
give such additional security for the safe keeping of this money as 
the corporate authorities may require. 

How Money Shall be Disbursed. — Before any of such money 
shall be disbursed the board of education must pass a resolution 
directing what amount shall be expended and the purpose or pur- 
poses for which it shall be used. Upon such resolution of the 
board, drafts shall be drawn by the president and countersigned by 
the secretary or clerk. These drafts should show the purposes for 
which the money is expended. 

Moneys to be Held by Treasurer of Board. — All moneys 
raised in a union free-school district whose boundaries do not coin- 
cide with those of an incorporated village, and all moneys appor- 



BOARD OF EDUCATION — POWERS AND DUTIES I25 

tioned to such districts from any fund or source shall be paid to 
the treasurer of the board of education. 

Disbursement of Such Moneys. — Moneys in these districts 
shall be disbursed in the same manner as they are by treasurers of 
incorporated villages. 

Supervision of Commissioner of Education. — The Commis- 
sioner of Education has general supervision of each and every union 
free school and all its departments. He also has general super- 
vision of boards of education and their management of the school 
system. 

Boards to Make Reports. — On the first day of August of each 
year every board of education must file with the town clerk of the 
town in which the schoolhouse of its district is located, a report 
to the Commissioner of Education for the school year ending July 
31st preceding. The report should include all information required 
by law and all that the Commissioner of Education shall require. 
Boards of education must also, upon the request of the Commissioner 
of Education, make a special report to him on any designated sub- 
ject relating to the condition of their school or schools. 

Board of Education May Adopt an Academy as an Academic 
Department. — If an academy exists in a district organized as a 
union free-school district, the board of education, if directed by a 
vote of the district to do so, may adopt such academy as the 
academic department of the union free-school district. Consent to 
such transaction must, of course, be obtained from the trustees of 
such academy. The trustees of such academy, when they have 
given such consent, should pass a resolution declaring their office 
as trustees vacant. A certificate to the effect that such resolution 
was adopted should be signed by the officers of the board of trus- 
tess of such academy and filed in the office of the clerk of the 
county in which such academy is located. After these various 
steps have been taken such academy becomes the academic depart- 
ment of such union free school. 

Board May Lease an Academy. — The board of education of a 
union free-school district, with the approval of the Commissioner 
of Education, may adopt an academy as the academic department 
thereof, and contract for the instruction therein of pupils of 
academic grade, residing in the district. The academy thereupon 
becomes the academic deparjtment of such union free school, and 
the district is entitled to the same rights and privileges, is subject 



126 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

to the same duties, and the apportionment and distribution of State 
school money shall be made to it, as if an academic department had 
been established in such school. 

Expenses of Representatives of Boards of Education to Attend 
Educational Meetings is Not a Proper Public Charge; — In July, 
1899, the clerk and two members of the board of education of the 
city of Syracuse attended the annual meeting of the National Edu- 
cational Association at Los Angeles, Cal, These representatives 
attended under direction from the board of education. Their legiti- 
mate expenses in attending this meeting were audited by the board 
of education. An action was brought by a taxpayer of the city of 
Syracuse to restrain the board of education from paying these 
expenses. The Supreme Court held that such expenses were not a 
proper public charge. An appeal was taken from the action of 
the court to the Appellate Division. This court for the fourth 
department affirmed the action of the Supreme Court. There is 
no doubt but that the ruling of the court in this matter applies to 
the powers of each board of education in the State. (52 App. Div. 

579-) 

Issue Certiiicate of Indebtedness. — When taxes have been 
levied by a district, but not collected, the board of education of a 
district may borrow money to an amount not to exceed the amount 
of such uncollected taxes for the purposes of meeting the expenses 
of the current fiscal year. This money may be borrowed by issuing 
certificates of indebtedness which must be signed by the president 
and clerk of the board. Such certificates must be payable within 
the current fiscal year or within nine months thereafter. They 
shall bear a rate of interest not to exceed six per cent. 

Night Schools. — A board of education may establish night 
schools free to all residents of the district. A person over twenty- 
one years of age is therefore entitled to attend a night school when 
one has been established, without the payment of tuition. They 
may also prescribe courses of study therein. 

Kindergartens. — A board of education may establish kinder- 
gartens which shall be free to all resident children of the district 
between the ages of four and six years. 

Medical Inspection. — The board of education of each union 
free-school district is required to employ, at a compensation to be 
agreed upon by the parties, a competent physician to make inspec- 
tions of pupils attending the public schools in such district and town- 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 12/ 

ship. Such board may also employ one or more school nurses, who 
must be registered trained nurses and authorized to practice as such. 
The expense of such medical inspection is a charge upon the district 
or township. The chapter on medical inspection treats this subject 
fully. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

How are rules for the government of a board of education adopted? What 
regulations may a board adopt for schools? Explain the relation of a 
teacher to such regulations. 

Who is the proper authority to adopt courses of study for union free 
schools? Who determines how pupils shall be graded, classified and pro- 
moted? In what subject are boards of education required by special provision 
of laiv to provide for instruction? What authority has a board of education 
in determining the text-books to be used in their school? When may a board 
provide text-books for pupils? 

When may a board purchase a site? Erect buildings? Repair buildings? 
Purchase furniture or apparatus? Hire school-rooms and furnish them? 
What is the duty of a board in relation to insuring property? How may 
premiums for such insurance be raised? Who is the custodian of the prop- 
erty owned b}' a union free-school district? What does such property in- 
clude? Is such property subject to taxation? 

When may a board sell real property of the district? How is title to such 
property transferred? What disposition must be made of the money thus 
realized? When may a board exchange real estate? What power has a 
board relative to holding property in trust? 

What general control of schools under its jurisdiction has a board of edu- 
cation? By what authority is the control of a board limited? Who deter- 
mines the conditions under which non-resident pupils are admitted? What is 
the law relative to tuition of such pupils in cases where their parents or 
guardians are taxed for school purposes? When may separate schools for 
colored children be employed? May colored children be excluded from a 
public school? By whom are teachers employed? What prohibition is there 
relative to the teachers that a board may employ? What is the law relative 
to the contract between teachers and board? What should such contract 
express? For what causes may a board remove a teacher? What power has 
a board of education to fill a vacancy on such board? What powef, has a 
board to remove any of its members? What is the duty of a board m pro- 
viding water-closets and in keeping them In proper condition? What in 
relation to outside stairways? What general powers of trustees of common- 
school districts are conferred upon boards of education? What powers of 
trustees of academies? 

When may a board of education appoint a superintendent of schools? How 
is the population of such district determined? By whom are the duties of 
such superintendent prescribed? How may he be removed from office? What 
amount is such district entitled to receive from the State for employing such 
superintendent ? 



128 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

What records are boards required to keep? Who may inspect such records? 
State fully what is required of boards relative to publishing receipts and dis- 
bursements. What estimates are boards required to present to annual meet- 
ings? What action should be taken upon such estimate at a district meeting? 
What estimates may be reduced? What estimates cannot be reduced? What 
estimates may be increased? If a district meeting should refuse to vote a 
tax for teachers' salaries, what action may a board take? What in case of 
contingent expenses? How may disputes relative to contingent expenses be 
settled? When should a board of education present an estimate to the corpo- 
rate authorities of a city or village? For what should such estimate be made? 
What is the duty of such corporate authorities when such estimate is properly 
presented to them ? What is the duty of such corporate authorities when the 
district has voted an expenditure for sites or buildings? 

What meetings must boards of education hold? How often? Must these 
meetings be public? What are executive meetings? What provision should 
a board make for visitation of schools? 

Who holds the school funds in a union free-school district whose boundaries 
coincide with those of an incorporated village or a city? How must the funds 
of such district be kept? What additional security must such treasurer give? 
How are the funds of such district disbursed? Who holds the funds of a 
union free-school district whose boundaries do not coincide with those of an 
incorporated village or a city? How are such funds disbursed? 

What supervision has the Commissioner of Education over union free- 
schools? Over boards of education? What reports are boards of education 
required to make? When? To whom? Where should each report be filed? 
What information should it contain? 

When may an academy be adopted as the academic department of a union 
free school? State fully what steps should be taken in proceedings of this 
kind. When may a board lease an academy and its site? What is the rule 
in relation to the payment of expenses of members of boards of education 
while attending educational conventions? Explain the authority of a board 
of education to issue certificates of indebtedness. Who may establish night 
schools? Who is eligible to attend? Who possesses the power to establish 
kindergartens ? What is the power and duty of the board with respect to the 
employment of a medical inspector? School nurse? When may a board of 
education authorize the medical inspection of children in attendance upon 
schools ? 



CHAPTER XV 

TOWN SCHOOL BUDGET — TOWN SCHOOL TAXES 

[Article XI-A] 

Preparation of Tax Budget. — Each town board of education 
is required to prepare an itemized tax budget on or before the first 
day of July annually. This budget must be in triplicate. It must 
contain a statement of the amount of funds required to be raised 
by tax for school purposes in the town for the ensuing school year. 
The budget must also contain a statement showing the estimated 
amount of funds which the board expects to receive from the State 
in the apportionment of public money and the expected amount to 
be received from other sources. For the year 191 7 it was impossi- 
ble of course to prepare this budget on or before the first day of 
July. The provision of the law requiring the budget to be issued 
on July 1st is directory and not mandatory. The failure, there- 
fore, to prepare such budget on the first day of July does not bar 
the board from preparing such budget at a later date. Since the 
board of education did not assume its functions in 1917 until the 
first day of August it was not possible for that board to prepare a 
statement of the budget on July ist. The board, however, in each 
succeeding year, should prepare such budget on or before the first 
day of July. 

The law specifically provides that the board of education shall 
specify the specific amounts which it proposes to raise for the fol- 
lowing purposes : 

a. The salaries and compensation of principals, teachers, medical 
inspectors, nurses, attendance officers, janitors and other employees 
appointed or employed by said board of education. 

b. All necessary incidental and contingent expenses of the schools 
of the town, including transportation, the purchase of fuel and light, 
supplies, textbooks, school apparatus, furniture and other articles 
and services necessary for the proper maintenance, operation and 
support of the schools of the town. » 

9 129 



130 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

c. The ordinary repairs of school buildings and other buildings 
under its control and management. 

d. The remodeling, improvement or enlargement of existing 
buildings, and the construction of new buildings and the furnishing 
and equipment thereof. 

e. The amount required to be raised for the payment of the inter- 
est and principal of bonds and other indebtedness lawfully incurred 
or to be incurred for school purposes and which are a charge against 
the town. 

f. The amount which may be required for the payment of any 
other claim against the town arising from the support and main- 
tenance of the schools of the town. 

g. The amount voted at the annual or a special school meeting 
in the town on a proposition or question lawfully submitted at such 
meeting. 

h. The amount determined upon as the proportionate share of 
the cost of maintaining a school in a district partly in two or more 
towns, required to be paid by said board. 

Publication, of Budget. — It is the duty of the clerk of the board 
of education to publish the budget which has been prepared by such 
board once each week for the four weeks next preceding the first 
day of August. This budget should be pubHshed in two news- 
papers, if there are two published in the town, or in one paper if 
there shall be but one published in the town. In addition to the 
publication of the budget the clerk should post a written or printed 
copy of the budget in at least five of the most public places in the 
town. This notice should be posted at least twenty 'days preceding 
the first day of August. 

Signature to Budget. — This tax budget should be signed in 
duplicate by the members of the board of education and the signa- 
ture of at least the majority of such members is necessary to give 
validity to the budget. 

Filing Budget. — One copy of such tax budget should be filed 
on or before the first day of September in the office of the clerk of 
the board of education and the other copy should be filed in the office 
of the clerk of the town. 

Examination of School Budget. — It is the duty of the district 
superintendent to examine the tax budget on file in the office of the 
clerk of each board of education during the month of August in 
each year. If such superintendent discovers errors or other irregu- 



TOWN SCHOOL BUDGET — TOWN SCHOOL TAXES I3I 

larities in the budget it is his duty to see that the board of education 
corrects the same. 

District Superintendent to Aid Boards in Preparing Budget. — 

The law specifically provides that the district superintendent shall 
aid the board of education of each town in his supervisory district 
in the preparation of school budgets and in the review and correc- 
tion of such budgets, and that the district superintendent shall per- 
form such other duties in relation to such budget as the Commis- 
sioner of Education shall prescribe. 

Supplemental Budget. — A town board of education has 
authority to issue a supplemental budget under the same procedure 
by which it issues its regular annual budget. Such supplemental 
budget may be issued under either of the following conditions : 

a. To raise funds for any lawful purpose authorized by the vote 
of an annual or special town school meeting. 

b. When the amount raised in the annual tax budget for the 
purposes specified therein are insufficient for such purposes- and such 
amounts may be raised by taxation by the board of education with- 
out being authorized by the voters of the town at a town school 
meeting. 

The board of education should follow the same procedure in the 
preparation of such budget and in filing it as is required of the 
board in preparing and filing an annual tax budget. 

Endorsement of Supplemental Budget. — Before a supple- 
mental budget may become efifective the district superintendent of 
the supervisory district in which the town is situated must endorse 
such budget in writing by specifying that the purposes for which 
the amounts therein specified are to be raised are proper and legal. 

Form of Budget. — The law provides that the Commissioner 
of Education shall prescribe the form of schoor budget to be used 
by town boards of education. The Commissioner of Education is 
further authorized to prescribe regulations not inconsistent with 
law providing for the review, correction and modification of such 
budget. The Commissioner of Education has prescribed the follow- 
ing form of budget : 

ESTIMATED RECEIPTS 

Public money for teachers' wages 

Public money for library and apparatus 

Public money for academic quota and attendance 



132 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Public money for nonresident tuition 
Other tuition receipts 
Receipts from other sources 
Balance to be raised by tax 

ESTIMATED EXPENDITURES 

1 General control (Regulative and executive service) 

Salaries of clerk of board 
Other expenses of board of education 
Compulsory education — salaries 
Compulsory education — other expenses 
School census 

2 Instructional service (Supervision and teaching) 

Salaries of teachers 

Textbooks 

Other supplies used in instruction 

3 Operation of school plant 

Wages of janitor and other employees 

Fuel 

Water, light and power 

Janitor's supplies 

Other expenses of operation 

4 Maintenance of plant (Upkeep) 

Upkeep of grounds (repairs) 

Repair of buildings 

Repair and replacement of equipment 

5 Fixed charges 

Insurance 

Contributions and contingencies 1 

6 Debt service 

Payment of bond » 

Redemption of short term loans 

Payment of interest — on bonds 

Payment of interest — on short term loans 

Refunds of taxes and tuition. 

7 Capital outlay (Acquisition and construction) 

Land 

New buildings 

Alteration of old building (not repairs) 



TOWN SCHOOL BUDGET — TOWN SCHOOL TAXES I33 

Equipment — heating, lighting, plumbing and electrical 
Equipment — furniture 
Equipment — instructional apparatus 
8 Auxiliary agencies and other sundry activities 
Libraries — salaries 

Libraries — books, repairs and replacements 
Libraries — other expense 
Health service — medical inspection 
Health service — nurse service 
Health service — dental service 
Health service — other expense 
Transportation of pupils 
Care of children in institutions 
Provision of lunches 
Community lectures and social centers 
Recreation 

Payments to private schools and schools of other civil 
divisions 

Township Law Makes No Change in Assessment and Collec- 
tion of Taxes. — The township law provides that a town board of 
education shall assess, levy and collect taxes for school purposes in 
the same manner in which taxes have been assessed, levied and col- 
lected under former statutes by trustees of school districts. The 
provisions of the education law relating to the assessment, levy and 
collection of taxes have not been modified by the township law, 
A town board of education, or a board of education of a union free- 
school district, will therefore proceed, in getting out its tax list 
and in levying and collecting taxes, as trustees of school districts or 
boards of education of union free-school districts have proceeded 
in former years. The town board of education will place its tax 
list and warrant in the hands of the town collector for collection. 
Such collector becomes the collector of school taxes for the town 
and will proceed to collect the taxes called for on his tax list and 
warrant as the education law provides. 

Board to Levy and Assess Taxes. — The law requires each 
town board of education to levy and assess against the taxable 
property within that portion of the town which is under the man- 
agement of the board of education, the several amounts specified 
in the tax budget which has been adopted by the board of education 



134 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

and in the supplemental tax budget, if any. This action of the 
board of education should be taken not later than the loth day of 
September annually. This provision of the law, however, is direct- 
ory, and if a board should fail to levy and assess such tax previous 
to the loth day of September it would still have legal authority to 
levy and assess such tax thereafter. 

Board's Warrant. — Upon completion of its tax list the board 
of education should immediately annex thereto its warrant for the 
collection of such tax. This warrant should direct the collector of 
the town to collect the tax so levied and assessed and pay the amount 
of such tax over to the town school treasurer. There is no such 
ofificer as a town school collector. The law provides that the officer 
known as the town collector shall collect the taxes for school 
purposes. 

Powers of Collector. — A town collector has the same powers 
and jurisdiction in relation to the collection of school taxes that he 
has in relation to all other taxes levied upon the taxable property 
of the town. The provisions of law regulating the collection of 
town taxes, except as otherwise provided in this act, apply to the 
collection of school taxes. 

Collector's Bond. — Before the board of education transmits to 
the town collector the warrant for the collection of school taxes such 
collector should be required to execute a bond to the town board 
of education with one or more sureties to be approved by the board. 
The board also prescribes the amount of such bond which is to be 
condition upon the due and faithful collection of the taxes under 
the board's v^^arrant, and the return of such taxes to the town school 
treasurer. 

Laws Applying. — Under the provisions of the township law, 
the provisions of the education law relating to the assessment and 
the collection of taxes shall apply to the assessment of school taxes 
in a town by the board of education of such town and also to the 
collection of such taxes, except so far as the provisions of the 
township law may be in conflict. The provisions of law relating to 
such matters and not included in this chapter will be found in 
chapter XVI. 

Assessment of Property in Two or More Towns. — It often 
occurs that school districts He in more than one town. All of the 
taxable property of such districts must be assessed for school pur- 
poses in the town in which the schoolhouse of the district is located. 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 1 35 

Such property must also be assessed at the same rate as the other 
taxable property of the town in which the principal schoolhouse is 
located. When property located within a school district is assessed 
for school purposes in a town other than that in which such property 
is situated, such property shall not be assessable for educational 
purposes in the town in which it is located. 

Equalization of Values. — When real property lies in two or 
more towns the value of such property may be equalized by the 
supervisors of such towns upon the request of the boards of educa- 
tion of such towns, or upon the request of three or more persons 
liable to pay taxes upon real property in either of such towns. The 
provisions of section 414 of the Education Law, which regulates 
the equalization of values in school districts located in two or more 
towns, must be applied in the equalization of values in cases of this 
kind. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

When must a tax budget be prepared? By whom? What must it contain? 
Are the provisions as to date of issue directory or mandatory? Name eight 
specific purposes for which funds may be included in the budget. What 
publication of the budget is required? What notices must be posted? Who 
signs the budget? Where are copies filed? Who is required to examine the 
budget? What duty is imposed upon district superintendents in relation to 
the budget? For what purposes may a supplemental budget be issued? 
What procedure is followed? Who prescribes the form of the budget? 

What is the general provision of the township law in relation to levying, 
assessing and collecting taxes? Has there been a change in the method of 
levying, assessing or collecting town school taxes? In union free-school dis- 
tricts? Who levys and assesses a tax for school purposes in a town? 
When? May the board assess taxes after such date? Upon what property 
is it assessed? What instrument must be attached to the tax list? By 
whom? What direction does it contain? Who collects school taxes in 
a town? What power has a town collector in collecting school taxes? 
What bond must he bive? When? What laws regulate the collection 
of, town school taxes? Explain how the property located in two or more 
towns must be assessed? How is the value of such property equalized? 



CHAPTER XVI 

ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION OF TAXES IN UNION FREE-SCHOOL 

DISTRICTS 

[Article 15] 

Assessment of Taxes by Board of Education. — All union free- 
school districts which are not under the provisions of the township 
law should continue to assess and collect taxes as such districts 
formerly have done. It is the duty of the board of education to 
assess on the taxable property of the district all taxes voted by a 
district meeting for the current school year and all taxes which such 
board is authorized to raise without vote of such meeting, and to 
make out its tax-list therefor. A tax voted for the ensuing school 
year should be assessed and the tax-list therefor issued within thirty 
days after August first following. The courts of the State have held, 
however, that the law in this respect is directory only and that 
trustees may issue a tax-list and warrant after the expiration of such 
thirty days. 

In assessing a tax voted by the district, a board of education may 
also assess at the same time a tax which they are authorized to assess 
without a vote of the district and may include two or more taxes in 
one tax-list. 

A tax-list is not complete until it has passed from the board to 
the officer whose duty it is to collect it, and any time before its 
completion it may be altered and amended by the trustees. 

Chapter 502, Laws of 1902, provides that any town in St. Lawrence county 
may adopt a uniform system of taxation for school purposes at a biennial 
town meeting. The details of the law may be found by consulting the session 
laws of 1902. 

Heading on Tax-List. — The law directs that the board of 
education shall prefix to each tax-list a heading showing the purpose 
for which the different items of the tax are raised. Any tax-list 
not containing this heading will upon appeal be set aside by the 
Commissioner of Education. The details of each item need not be 

136 



ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION OF DISTRICT TAXES 1 37 

set forth. If an item is for repairs, it is sufficient to state, " For 
repairs on schoolhouse, $25," and it is not necessary to give each 
item included in such repairs. 

Form of Tax-List. — In making out a tax-list boards should 
rule the necessary columns to give the information required in the 
form recommended by the State Tax Commissioners to town col- 
lectors. The following form is recommended: 

1. The first cloumn should contain the names of all the persons 
and corporations liable to taxation in the district. 

2. The second column should show the number of acres of land 
to be taxed to each person or corporation, and should contain a 
description of the property taxed. 

3. The third column should give the assessed valuation of such 
land. 

4. The fourth column should give the full value of all the taxable 
personal property of each of the persons or corporations named in 
the first column. 

5. Value of special franchise. 

6. Valuation of taxable rents reserved. 

7. The total tax assessed against each individual or corporation. 
Boards cannot place upon a tax-list the uncollected taxes of some 

former tax-list. They cannot increase the assessment upon the 
property included in a tax-list to make up a loss caused by a failure 
to assess property upon a former list. If property is omitted from 
a tax-list and the mistake is not discovered until the taxes are 
collected and the warrant is returned, it is too late to remedy the 
mistake. 

Apportionment of Taxes Upon Real Estate. — Boards must 
apportion district taxes upon all real estate within the boundaries 
of the district, except that which is exempt by law from taxation. 
Such property must be assessed to the person or corporation owning 
or possessing it at the time the tax-list is made out. 

Real Estate Lying" in One Body but in Two or More Dis- 
tricts. — Lands lying in one body but located in two or more 
school districts, and occupied by the same person either as owner 
or as agent for the same principal or tenant under the same landlord, 
if assessed as one lot by the town assessors, are taxable in the dis- 
trict in which the occupant of such lands resides. 

In cases of this kind there are four conditions must be found 



138 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

to exist in order to authorize an assessment of the entire prop- 
erty in that district in which the occupant resides. These are : 

First. The land must lie in one body. It is not sufficient that 
such lands shall be joined by a mere point. There must be an 
actual line of contact. 

Second. The title of such lands must be'' vested in the same per- 
son. If there is a joint ownership of such lands, they cannot be 
assessed under this provision. 

Third. The occupancy of such lands must be determined. The 
whole body of such land must be occupied by one person. This 
person must be either the owner of such lands or the agent or ten- 
ant of one and the same landlord. 

Fourth. The lands must have been assessed as one lot on the 
last assessment roll of the town after revision by the assessors. 

All lands of this description which do not comply with the four 
provisions above given, must be assessed for their respective por- 
tions in the district in which such parts are located. 

Assessment of Vacant Land, — \Anien any real estate within 
a district so liable to taxation shall not be occupied and improved by 
the owner, his servant or agent, and shall not be possessed by any 
tenant, the trustees of any district, at the time of making out any 
tax-list by which any tax shall be imposed thereon, shall make and 
insert in such tax-list a statement and description of every such lot, 
piece or parcel of land so owned by nonresidents therein, in the 
same manner as required by law from town assessors in m.aking 
out the assessment-roll of their towns ; and if any such lot is known 
to belong to an incorporated company liable to taxation in such dis- 
trict, the name of such company shall be specified, and the value of 
such lot or piece of land shall be set down opposite to such descrip- 
tion, which value shall be the same that was affixed to such lot or 
piece of land in the last assessment-roll of the town ; and if the same 
was not separately valued in such roll, then it shall be valued in 
proportion to the valuation which was affixed in the said "assessment- 
roll to the whole tract of which such lot or piece shall be part. 

A collector cannot levy upon and sell the personal property of 
the owner of non-resident land. 

But if the owner of real estate in any school district improves 
and occupies such land himself, or causes it to be improved or occu- 
pied by an agent or servant, such owner, in. regard to the liability 



ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION OF DISTRICT TAXES 1 39 

of such property to taxation, is considered a taxable inhabitant of 
such district. In this case a collector could seize and sell the 
personal property of the owner of such estate for the amount of 
school taxes. 

If such real estate is occupied by tenants or sub-tenants they are 
the proper persons to whom such property should be assessed, and 
not the owner thereof. If such tenants improve the land, although 
they do not reside on it, they are considered under the law taxable 
inhabitants of such district. 

Assessment of Bank Stock. — A board of education should 
include in its tax-list real property owned by a bank or banking 
association organized under the laws of the State or of the United 
States and located in its district. However, the stock of such bank 
and the bank's personal property should not be included in such tax 
list. Bank stock and the personal property of a bank is assessed by 
the board of supervisors for all State, county, city, village, town and 
school district purposes. A bank is required to pay a tax of one per 
cent on the value of its stock to the county treasurer of the county 
in which the bank is located. No deduction can be made on the 
value of this stock because of the personal indebtedness of the 
owners of such stock. The tax must be paid on or before the 
thirty-first day of December annually. It is immaterial where the 
holder of bank stock may reside. Such stock is assessable in the 
tax district in which the bank is located. The value of a share of 
bank stock is determined by adding together the amount of the 
capital stock, the surplus and the undivided profits and dividing 
this sum by the number of shares of such bank. 

The clerk of a school district in which a bank is located is 
required to file with the board of supervisors during the first week 
of the annual session of such board a written statement under oath 
showing the tax rate of the district for the preceding year. A 
similar statement as to the tax rate of each city, village, town or 
other tax district in which a bank is located must also be filed. The 
amount of tax on such bank stock due a school district is such pro- 
portion of the tax as the tax rate of such school district bears to 
the aggregate tax rates of all the tax districts in which such shares 
of stock are taxable. The county treasurer should pay to each school 
district its proportionate share of such tax after deducting therefrom 
a fee of one per cent for collection. (Section 24, Tax Law.) 



140 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Apportionment of Taxes on Personal Property. — Trustees 
must apportion district taxes upon all persons residing in the dis- 
trict and upon all corporations, for all personal property owned by 
them and liable to taxation in such district. 

Property Exempt from Taxation. — Under the tax law the fol- 
lowing property is exempt from taxation and cannot be assessed 
for school purposes : 

1. Property of the United States. 

2. Property of the State of New York except wild or forest 
lands in the forest preserve or other property which special acts 
make assessable in certain school districts. 

3. Property of a municipal corporation held for public use and 
situated within the corporation, including real property held or used 
for cemetery purposes. 

4. Property exempt by law from execution other than an exempt 
homestead. The tax law specifically provides that real property 
purchased with the proceeds of a pension shall be assessable for 
school purposes. 

5. fhe real property of a corporation or association organized 
exclusively for the moral or mental improvement of men or women, 
or for religious, bible, tract, charitable, benevolent, missionary, hos- 
pital, infirmary, educational, scientific, literary, library, patriotic, 
historical or cemetery purposes, or for the enforcement of laws 
relating to children or animals, or for two or more such purposes, 
and used exclusively for carrying out thereupon one or more of such 
purposes, and the personal property of any such corporation shall 
be exempt from taxation. But no such corporation or association 
shall be entitled to any such exemption if any officer, -member or 
employee thereof shall receive or may be lawfully entitled to receive 
any pecuniary profit from the operations thereof, except reasonable 
compensation for services in effecting one or more of such purposes, 
or as proper beneficiaries of its strictly charitable purposes ; or if the 
organization thereof for any such avowed purposes be a guise or 
pretense for directly or indirectly making any other pecuniary profit 
for such corporation or association, or for any of its members or 
employees, or if it be not in good faith organized or conducted 
exclusively for one or more of such purposes. 

6. Real property not exceeding in value $15^000 of an incorpo- 
rated association of volunteer firemen when such property is used 
exclusively by such association. 



ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION OF DISTRICT TAXES I4I 

7. The real property of an agricultural association permanently 
used by it for exhibition grounds. 

8. The dwelling houses and lots of religious corporations while 
actually used by the officiating clergymen thereof. The total 
amount of such exemption of any one religious corporation shall 
not exceed $2,000. 

9. The real and personal property of a minister of the gospel or 
priest of any denomination being an actual resident and inhabitant 
of this State, who is engaged in the work assigned to him by the 
church or denomination to which he belongs, or who is disabled by 
impaired health from the performance of such duties, or over sev- 
enty years of age, and the property of the widow of such minister 
while she remains such and is an actual resident and inhabitant of 
this State, but the total amount of such exemption on account of 
both real and personal property, shall not exceed fifteen hundred 
dollars. 

10. Household furniture and personal eflfects to the value of one 
thousand dollars. 

Valuation of Property. — Boards of education, in making out 
a tax-list, must ascertain the valuation of taxable property so far 
as possible, from the last assessment-roll of the town after such 
roll has been revised by the assessors. 

Reduction of Valuation. — The valuation of any property shall 
not be reduced from that given in the town assessment-roll, unless 
the persons claiming such reduction file a written notice of such 
claim with the trustees before the tax-list is completed. When 
such claim is duly filed and it appears that the property in question 
has diminished in value since the last assessment-roll of the town was 
made, or it appears that an error has been made by the town assess- 
ors, it is the duty of the trustees to ascertain the true value of such 
property. The law provides that they shall give notice to the inter- 
■ ested parties and proceed in the same manner as town assessors. 
If, in the judgment of the trustees, such claim is valid, they should 
reduce the valuation of the property and make out their tax-list. 
Such tax-list should be left with one of the trustees or at some 
place where interested persons can inspect it for at least twenty 
days from the date on which the notice of the completion of such 
tax-list is given. The notice of the completion of such tax-list and 
of the original assessment must be posted in at least three public 



142 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

places in the district. When the valuation of property is reduced 
the interested parties are all the tax-payers of the district. 

Assessment of Property by Trustees.— When any taxable 
property of the district is not included in the assessment-roll of the 
town, it is the duty of trustees to place such property on the tax- 
list of the district and give it a valuation, or if any property shall 
have increased in valuation since the last assessment-roll of the 
town was revised, it is the duty of trustees to give such property an 
increased valuation. In either of these cases, trustees should serve 
a notice of their action on the person so assessed ; it is not necessary 
to post notices in the district. 

Equalization of Valuations by Supervisors. — When the trus- 
tees of a district which embraces parts of two or more towns request 
the supervisors of such towns to meet to determine whether the 
assessments of property in these towns are equitable when compared 
with each other, or when three or more persons liable to pay tax 
on real estate make such request, it is the duty of the supervisors to 
comply with such request. This request to supervisors should be 
written, and the meeting of the supervisors should be not less than 
five nor more than ten days from the service of such notice. The 
notice should name the time and should designate some place within 
the bounds of the towns in which the districts are located. 

If the supervisors find that such assessments of property are not 
equitable, they should determine the lielative proportion of taxes 
that should be assessed upon the property of the parts of such dis- 
trict lying in different towns. . Thereafter, trustees should assess 
in accordance with such determination until new assessment-rolls 
of the towns are perfected and filed. 

When the supervisors are unable to agree, they may summon the 
supervisor of an adjoining town and the finding of a majority of 
them shall be the determination of the question. 

Apportionment of Valuation of Railroad, Telegraph, Tele- 
phone, Water Pipe Line or Gas Companies and of Special Fran- 
chises Between School Districts. — It is the duty of the assessors 
of a town in which a railroad, telegraph, telephone, water pipe line 
or gas company is located to apportion the value thereof between 
the several school districts through which it extends. Such appor- 
tionments shall be entered by the assessors in the appropriate column 
of the assessment-roll and a certificate thereof signd by the assess- 
ors or a majority of them shall be filed with the town or city clerk 



ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION OF DISTRICT TAXES I43 

within five days thereafter, and thereugpn the valuations so appor- 
tioned shall become the valuations of such property in such districts 
for the purpose of taxation for the ensuing year. 

It is the duty of the town clerk to furnish the trustees of the 
districts interested a certified statement of the valuations appor- 
tioned. If the assessors refuse to make such apportionment, the 
supervisor of the town must make it either upon the request of 
the trustee of a district or of the corporation assessed. (Article 2, 
Tax Law.) 

A Person Working Land on Shares. — A tenant worl^ing land 
and paying a share of the produce as rent is liable to taxation for 
school purposes on such land. In all cases of doubt it is safer to 
assess taxes to the owner of land than to the tenant. 

A Person in Possession Under Contract. — Any person in pos- 
session of real property under contract for the purchase thereof is 
liable to taxation for school purposes in the district in which such 
property is located. 

Tenant's Tax Chargeable to Landlord. — A person who is 
tenant at will or for three years or a shorter period of time, and who 
pays a tax upon the real estate of which he is in possession^ for 
the purpose of purchasing a site for a schoolliouse, or for purchas- 
ing, building, or repairing a schoolhouse, or for supplying the neces- 
sary fuel and appurtenances, may require the owner of such real 
estate to refund the amount paid for such taxes. The owner of 
such real estate could not be compelled by the tenant to pay such 
tax if he had made an agreement that such tenant should pay the 
tax. 

Exempt from Taxation for Building a Schoolhouse. — Any tax- 
able inhabitant of a district shall be exempt from taxation for the 
purpose of building a schoolhouse in the district in which he resides, 
under the following conditions : Such inhabitant must have been 
set off from some other district ivithoiit his consent, within four 
years previous to the assessment of such tax and such inhabitant 
must have paid within that period in the district from which he was 
set off a tax for building a schoolhouse in such other district. A 
voluntary contribution toward building a schoolhouse is not a tax. 
If such inhabitant was set off from a district with his consent, he is 
not exempt from the taxation in question. 

Warrant for Collection of Taxes. — The w^arrant for the col- 
lection of a district tax should be issued by the board and signed 



144 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

by them or a majority of them. A warrant may be signed with or 
without seal. It is the official document which gives the collector 
authority to collect all taxes included in the tax-list. The warrant 
confers upon a school-district collector the same powers that are 
conferred upon town collectors by the warrant of the board of 
supervisors. 

Delivery of Warrant. — A warrant for the collection of any tax 
voted by the district must not be delivered to the collector until the 
thirty-first day after the tax is voted. 

A warrant for the collection of a tax which trustees are authorized 
to raise without a vote of the district may be delivered to the col- 
lector whenever it is completed. 

Trustees should take a written receipt from a collector for every 
tax-list and warrant delivered to such collector. Stfch receipt 
should show the date on which the warrant is returnable and the 
amount to be collected. 

Notice of Receiving Taxes. — As soon as the collector receives 
a warrant fqr the collection of taxes, he should post notices in at 
least three public places in the district — one of these notices must 
be on the outside of the front door of the schoolhouse — stating- 
that such warrant has been received by him and that during the 
ensuing thirty days from the date of such notices he will receive all 
taxes voluntarily paid to him. 

If there is any assessment on the tax-list against a railroad com- 
pany or against any canal or pipe line company, the collector must 
notify such company either personally or by mail at least twenty 
days before the expiration of the thirty days above mentioned. If 
a collector fails to give such notice, he will be entitled to receive 
only one per cent fees for the collection of such taxes. This notice 
may be filed, in the case of a railroad, with the ticket agent of such 
railroad nearest the district in which such tax is assessed, and in 
the case of a canal or pipe-line company, with the president, secre- 
tary, or general division superintendent or manager of such 
company. 

If the tax of any non-resident is more than one dollar, the col- 
lector should give like notice to such nonresident, if his post-office 
address is known to the collector or if the collector can ascertain 
what such address is from the trustees or the clerk of the district. 

Notice of Assessment and Tax to Railroad and Other Com- 
panies. — A collector within five days after receiving a tax or 



ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION OF DISTRICT TAXES 1 45 

assessment-roll should deliver to the county treasurer a statement 
showing the name of every railroad, telegraph, telephone, electric 
light or gas company appearing on such roll, the assessment of real 
and personal property against such company and the amount of tax. 
The county treasurer should then notify the ticket agent or manager 
of any such railroad, telegraph, telephone, electric light or gas com- 
pany at the station nearest to the office of such treasurer of the 
receipt of such statement and the amount of tax to be paid by such 
company. 

Such Companies May Pay Tax to County Treasurer. — A rail- 
road, telegraph, telephone, electric light or gas company may pay 
its school tax, within thirty days after receiving notice that such 
tax has been levied, to the treasurer of the county but must add 
a fee of one per centum to the amount of such tax. A railroad 
company may pay its tax direct to the collector of a district. 

Company's Failure to Pay Tax Within Thirty Days. — If such 
railroad, telegraph, telephone, electric light or gas company fails 
to pay its tax within thirty days, the county treasurer should notify 
the collector of the school district. It is then the duty of the col- 
lector to proceed to collect such tax with five per centum thereon. 
A collector cannot legally proceed to the collection of such tax pre- 
vious to the receipt of such notice from the county treasurer. 

County Treasurer Must Pay Funds to the Collector. — The 
county treasurer should pay any tax paid to him by a railroad 
company to the collector of the district by which such tax was 
levied, together with the one per cent fee collected on such tax. 

Renevv^als of Warrants. — If any of the taxes on a tax-list are 
not paid previous to the expiration of the trustees' warrant, the 
trustees may renew such warrant and allow the collector additional 
time to collect such unpaid taxes. This renewal should be indorsed 
upon or attached to the original warrant and should state the period 
of time for which it is issued. A warrant may be renewed more 
than once, but the approval of the supervisor of the town in which 
the district is located is necessary. Where such approval is not 
obtained, a warrant can be renewed only once. 

Amendment or Correction of Tax-List. — Whenever the trus- 
tees discover that an error has been made in the tax-list, such tax- 
list may be amended or corrected upon application to the Commis- 
sioner of Education. The application should state the exact facts 
10 



146 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

relative to such error, the date of the tax-Hst, and the number of the 
district and the name of the town in which such district is located. 

Filing Tax-List and Warrant. — Within fifteen days after any 
tax-list and warrant has been returned by a collector to the trustees 
of a district, such trustees should deliver such tax-list and warrant 
to the town clerk of the town in which the collector resides. 

Board May Sue for Tax. — When any tax on a tax-list has 
not been paid, either by an individual or a corporation, within the 
time permitted by the warrant or the renewal of a warrant, the 
board may in their name of office sue such individual or corpora- 
tion for such unpaid taxes. 

Board May Sue Collector's Bond. — For all forfeitures to 
which a collector is liable and for all money which he may neglect 
or refuse to pay to his successors in office, or the treasurer of the 
district, the board may sue the bond of such collector. 

Collector's Return of Unpaid Taxes. — The law provides that a 
collector shall make a return to the board of education of all unpaid 
taxes on real estate and upon nonresident stockholders in banking 
associations organized under the laws of congress. This return 
must be made at the time the collector returns his warrant to the 
board. A copy of that part of the assessment'-roll unpaid must be 
made by the collector, and he must make an affidavit before some 
person authorized to administer oaths that the taxes named in such 
copy are unpaid, and that after diligent efforts he has been unable 
to collect the same. After a collector has pursued this course, the 
board should credit him with the amount of such unpaid taxes, and 
thus relieve him from the liability resulting from negligence in 
collecting. 

Board's Certificate to County Treasurer. — As soon as the 
board of any district receive such return from a collector, they 
should compare it with the original tax-list, and if they find it to be 
a true copy, they should attach thereto their certificate showing that 
they have made such comparison and that they find such return cor- 
rect. The board should then transmit the return of the collector 
of such unpaid taxes, together with the collector's affidavit and their 
certificate, to the county treasurer. 

Collection of Such Unpaid Taxes. — The county treasurer 
should present to the board of supervisors of the county the col- 
lector's return of such unpaid taxes, the collector's affidavit, and the 
certificate of comparison by the board of education; and such board 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 147 

of supervisors should thereupon assess the amount of such unpaid 
taxes, with seven per cent of such sum in addition thereto, upon the 
very same property upon which the board of education originally 
assessed the tax. If such taxes are then paid, a return should be 
made to the county treasurer. If these taxes should not be paid, 
the county treasurer should render an account thereof to the State 
Comptroller, and that officer should sell the land on which such 
taxes are assessed as the law directs. 

Any person against whom such unpaid taxes stand may volun- 
tarily pay such tax, with five per cent in addition thereto, to the 
county treasurer, any time before the board of supervisors have 
directed that such tax be levied. i 

Payment of Such Unpaid Taxes by County. — The county 
treasurer upon receiving the required papers to be filed with him, 
should pay to the collector of the district in which such taxes were 
levied the amount of such unpaid taxes from the contingent fund 
or money raised for the purpose of paying such taxes. If there is 
no contingent or other fund available for this purpose at the time 
of levying such unpaid taxe^, the board of supervisors shall pay to 
the district the amount of such taxes which has been relevied. 

Collector's Receipt. — The tax law requires a school district 
collector to give a written or printed receipt to each person paying 
a tax. This receipt must show the date of payment, name of per- 
son, description of property, amount of tax, date of delivery of 
assessment roll. The trustee must supply the collector with a book 
of receipts in form approved by the State Tax Commissioners. In 
issuing such receipt the collector must fill in the blank stubs the 
essential facts called for in the receipt. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

Who is charged with the duty of making out a district tax-list in a union 
free-school district? When should a tax-list for a tax voted by such dis- 
trict be made out? What have the courts ruled on this question? What taxes 
may a board include in one tax-list? When is a tax-list complete? When 
may a tax-list be altered? Explain the nature of the heading which should 
be prefixed to a tax-list. Into how many columns should a paper on which 
a tax-list is made be ruled? State the information which should be given in 
each column. Have boards the power to include in a tax-list the uncollected 
taxes of a former tax-list? Have they the power to assess upon property a tax 
to meet a loss caused by a failure to assess property on a former tax-list? 
When can the omission of a board to assess property be corrected? 



148 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Upon what real estate must boards assess district taxes? To whom should 
such property be assessed? What is the law relative to asessing real estate 
lying in one body but in two or more districts ? What are the four questions 
to be determined in these cases? How must such lands be assessed when 
they do not comply with these provisions ? What is non-resident land ? How 
should such land be assessed? State fully how it should be placed upon the 
tax-list? How should it be described? Can a collector legally sell the per- 
sonal property of the owner of non-resident land for a tax on such land? 
When a non-resident owns real estate in a school district and when he im- 
proves such property himself or causes it to be improved by an agent, what is 
his liability for taxes? When such property is occupied by tenants or sub- 
tenants, to whom should it be assesed? What property owned by a bank or 
banking association may be taxed? May bank stock be taxed? Explain 
how a bank pays its school taxes. 

What personal property should be assessed by boards for district taxes? 
How is the valuation of property ascertained by boards? State ten classes 
of property exempt from taxation for school purposes. Have boards the 
power to reduce the valuation of property? What must a person do who 
desires the valuation of his property reduced? What is the duty of boards 
when such claim is filed? If a board at any time changes the valuation of 
property, what should such board do? What notice of completion of tax-list 
must be given? When the valuation of property is reduced who are inter- 
ested parties? What is the duty of boards in relation to real property of the 
district not found on the town assessment-roll? What is their duty in re- 
lation to property that has increased in value since the last town assesssment- 
roll was revised ? What is their duty in relation to personal property not on 
the town assessment-roll? What notice should be given in any of these three 
cases when property is assessed by a board? 

Who determines whether the property of a district located in two or more 
towns is equitably assessed? When are supervisors required to act in this 
capacity? If such supervisors agree that such property is not equitably as- 
sessed, what is their duty? What should be done if they are unable to agree? 

Explain, how the apportionment of values is made in the case of certain 
corporations. When is a tenant liable for taxes onland? In cases of doubt, 
to whom should such land be assessed? Who is liable to taxation for real 
property which is in the possession of a person under a contract of purchase? 
Under what conditions and for what taxes may a tenant require his landlord 
to refund the amount of taxes paid by such tenant? Under what conditions 
is a taxable inhabitant of a district exempt from taxation for building a 
schoolhouse ? 

What is a board's warrant? How is it issued? What authority does it 
give a collector? When may a warrant for a tax voted by the district be 
legally delivered to the collector? When may a warrant for a tax which 
boards are authorized to levy without a vote of the district be delivered to 
the collector ? What general notice of a warant for taxes should a collector 
give? Where should such notices be posted? What special notice should 
be given to a railroad company or a canal or pipe-line company? How should 
such notice be given? How would a failure to give such notice affect 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 149 

the collector? What special notice should be given to non-residents? 
What notice should be given to the county treasurer? Explain the two ways 
in which a railroad company may pay its tax. How should such notice be 
given? May a warrant be renewed? By whom? In what manner? May a 
warant be renewed more than once? In what manner? 

When may a tax-list be amended or corrected? By whom? What should 
the application for this purpose show? May boards sue for a tax? When? 
For what causes may a board sue a collector's bond? What should a board 
do with a tax-list and warant returned by a collector? 

To whom should a collector make a return of unpaid taxes ? When should 
such return be made? How should it be made? What effect does such re- 
turn have upon the liability of the collector? Upon receiving such return, 
what action should a board take? What should the county treasurer do to 
place the matter properly before the board of supervisors? What action 
should be taken by the board of supervisors? If these taxes are then paid 
what should be done with the amount paid? If these taxes are not paid, 
what action should be taken by the county treasurer? What should the comp- 
troller then do? How may this amount be collected? When may it be 
voluntarily paid? From what fund should the county treasurer pay such 
tax? To whom? If there is no such fund how is such tax paid? 



CHAPTER XVII 

STATE SCHOOL MONEYS 

[Article i8] 

Common-School, Literature and the United States Deposit 
Funds. — The capital of the common-school fund, the capital of 
the literature fund, and the capital of the United States deposit 
fund shall be respectively preserved inviolate. The revenue of the 
said common-school fund shall be applied to the support of the 
common schools; the revenue of the said hterature fund shall be 
applied to the support of academies; and the sum of twenty-five 
thousand dollars of the revenues of the United States deposit fund 
shall each year be appropriated to and made part of the capital of 
the said common school fund. Article IX, section 3, State Consti- 
tution. 

[Section i of article IX of the amended constitution of 1846, without 
change.] 

A statute authorizing an orphan asylum to share in the common-school 
fund would be in violation of this section. (People ex rel. v. Board of 
Education, 13 Barb. 400.) 

The manner of the disposition of the common-school fund Is left to the 
Legislature. (Dallas v. Fosdick, 40 How. Pr. 249, 252.) But the Legislature 
cannot appropriate therefrom for the construction of an astronomical observa- 
toiy (People ex rel. v. Allen, 42 N. Y. 404) ; nor for the benefit of a normal 
school. (Gordon v. Cornes, 47 id. 608.) 

The words " common schools " as used in this section mean such schools 
as are open to all, and not confined to any class. (People v. Board of Edu- 
cation, 13 Barb. 400; People ex rel. v. Crissley, 45 Hun, 19.) 

No Aid in, Denominational Schools. — Neither the State nor 
any subdivision thereof, shall use its property or credit or any 
public money, or authorize or permit either to be used, directly or 
indirectly, in aid or maintenance, other than for examination, or 
inspection, of any school or institution of learning wholly or in part 
under the control or direction of any rehgious denomination, or in 
which any denominational tenet or doctrine is taught. Article IX, 
section 4, State Constitution. 

Different Fimds. — There are different sources from which 
money has been derived by the State for the support of the public 

150 



STATE SCHOOL MONEYS I5I 

school system. These sources are the common-school fund, the 
United States deposit fund, and the free-school fund. These funds, 
together with the literature fund, are known under the Finance 
Law as the Education Fund. 

The Common-School Fund. — Upon the recommendation in a 
special message of Governor Morgan Lewis to the State Legislature 
in 1805, an act was passed which created this fund. It provided 
that " The net proceeds of five hundred thousand acres of the vacant 
and unappropriated lands of the people of this State, which shall 
be first sold by the Surveyor-General, shall be and are hereby appro- 
priated as a permanent fund for the support of common schools." 
The act also provided that no distribution should be made until the 
annual revenues of the fund amounted to fifty thousand dollars. 
This revenue was not realized until 1815, when the first distribution 
was made. This fund was apportioned among the counties of the 
State on the basis of population, and each county was required to 
raise by taxation an amount equal to the amount received from the 
State. The revenue derived from these two sources constituted 
the State school moneys for the payment of teachers' salaries. 
When this amount was insufficient to pay the salaries of teachers, 
the balance was raised by rate bills. In 1805, when this fund was 
originated, its capital was nearly fifty-nine thousand dollars; but 
in 1917, it had increased to over four million seven hundred sev- 
enty-three thousand dollars. Out of the revenue of this fund the 
Legislature annually appropriates for common schools one hundred 
and seventy thousand dollars. 

The United States Deposit Fund. — On June 23, 1836, congress 
passed an act providing for the distribution of the surplus revenues 
which were held in the United States treasury at that time for safe- 
keeping among the various States. Of this distribution New York 
received about $4,000,000. It must be understood that this fund 
was not given or loaned to the State, but was simply placed in its 
possession for safe-keeping. The United States government could 
recall this money, but probably it never will. Under a provision 
of the State Constitution, New York is required to keep the amount 
of this fund equal to the amount which was originally deposited, 
In 1837, by an act of the State Legislature, this fund was distributed 
among the counties of the State on the basis of population. It was 
placed in the hands of two loan commissioners in each county, who 
were appointed by the Governor, to be loaned by them in their 



152 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

county upon bond and mortgage with interest. From the income 
derived from this fund, there was appropriated by the State Legis- 
lature in 1^38 for the support of common schools, the sum of 
$165,000. This sum was annually appropriated by the Legislature 
until 1881, when the appropriation was reduced to $75,000, owing to 
a reduction in the revenue. This reduction in revenue was caused 
by a depreciation in the property on which investments from this 
fund had been made. Since 1881, the Legislature has annually 
appropriated from the revenues of this fund $75,000, and this sum 
becomes a part of the State schpol moneys and is used for the sup- 
port of the public schools. 

The Free-School Fund. — The amount appropriated annually 
by the Legislature for the support of common schools is discretion- 
ary but as the law specifies the amount of a supervision, district and 
teachers' quota the Legislature must appropriate an amount suf- 
ficient for this purpose or assume the responsibility of changing 
the basis of apportioning school funds. The first State tax levied 
for this purpose was under the authority of an act passed in 1851, 
providing for the sum of $800,000. This amount has been gradu- 
ally increased. The greatest increase was in 1867, the year in which 
the rate-bills were abolished, when the Legislature increased the 
amount to be raised from a tax of three-fourths of a mill on each 
dollar of valuation, to one and one-fourth mills on the dollar. It 
was the intent of the Legislature when this increase was made, to 
supply funds, which, combined with the revenues of the common- 
school fund and the United States deposit fund, would be sufficient 
to support common schools in most of the school districts of the 
State for at least twenty-eight weeks each year. 

The amount of money realized from these sources soon proved 
insufficient, in many cases, to support the schools the required time, 
and the deficiency has been raised by local taxes upon school dis- 
tricts. During the school year ending July 31, IQ16, the entire 
cost for maintaining and supervising the public school system of the 
State, including all expenditures for normal schools and other insti- 
tutions under the supervision of the Commissioner of Education, 
was $79,551,529.46; and of this amount $6,419,039.26 were received 
from State funds, $61,601,746.15 were raised by local taxes upon 
the property of school districts and cities, and $11,530,744.05 were 
derived from other sources. 

The amount previously raised by direct taxation was known as 



STATE SCHOOL MONEYS 1 53 

the free-school fund, but since the amount for this purpose has 
been appropriated' from State funds obtained from indirect taxa- 
tion the Legislature has not denominated it the free-school fund, 
but has appropriated this money for the support of common schools. 

Gospel and School Lands. — The origin of these lands may be 
traced back to an act passed by the State Legislature, May lo, 
1784. This was an act to provide for the settlement of the waste 
and unappropriated lands of the State. It was intended to include 
all of such lands located within the boundaries of the State. The 
act provided that such lands should be divided into townships of 
six miles square, as nearly as possible, and that in each of such 
townships 300 acres of land should be set apart for the use of a 
minister of the gospel, and 690 acres for the use of a public school 
or schools. On May 5, 1786, the State Legislature passed another 
act regulating the sale of the unappropriated public lands of the 
State, and providing that the Surveyor-General should mark out in 
each township laid out, one lot for the support of the gospel and 
schools, as nearly as possible in the center of each township, and 
that such lot should not be sold, but reserved for and applied to 
promoting the gospel and the public school or schools in such 
tov^nship.- Under the provisions of this act, each lot was to contain 
640 acres, or as nearly that amount as possible. On February 25, 
1789, the Legislature passed another act regulating the sale and 
disposition of lands belonging to the State, and providing that town- 
ships should be divided int(^ lots containing 250 acres of land or as 
nearly that amount as possible, and that one lot should be reserved 
as nearly in the center of each township as possible, for the support 
of the gospel, and that another lot should likewise be reserved for 
the support of schools in such township. Subsequent acts of the 
State Legislature provided that the annual rents and profits derived 
from these lots set apart for school purposes, should be distributed 
among the schools in each town employing teachers approved by 
the proper authority, in proportion to the aggregate attendance of 
pupils in their respective schools. The sale of the gospel and school 
lands has been directed by the State Legislature, and the proceeds 
derived therefrom authorized to be used for the benefit of the pub- 
lic schools in the towns in which such lands were located. 

Literature Fund. — The first act creating this fund was passed 
in 1786. This act provided that unappropriated lands of the State 
should be sold by the Commissioners of the Land Office, and the 



154 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

funds used for the promotion of literature in the State. The reve- 
nue derived from the sale of lands under several subsequent acts 
was added to this fund. Revenue derived from arrears of quit 
rents in 1819, from the sale of land belonging to the canal fund, in 
1827, and from the United States Deposit Fund in 1836, was also 
added to this fund. 

The income derived from this fund is apportioned from the gen- 
eral fund for educational purposes. The capital of this fund is 
$284,201.32. 

State School Moneys Defined. — The amount appropriated by 
the State Legislature from the common-school fund and from the 
United States deposit fund, the literature fund, together with the 
amount appropriated from the other revenues of the State and for- 
merly known as the Free School fund, constitute the State school 
moneys. These funds are apportioned as follows : 

Supervision Quotas to Cities, Villages and Districts Employing 
Superintendents. — Every city in the State and every union free- 
school district in the State having a population of 5,000 or more — 
which employs a superintendent of schools, is entitled to receive 
$800. This money must be used for the support of the public 
schools of such city or union free-school district. No city or district 
is entitled to this allowance unless a competent person is employed 
as superintendent, who shall give his time exclusively to the general 
supervision "^f the public schools of such city or district. This 
appropriation is known as a supervision quota. 

Enumeration of Inhabitants. — A union free-school district, 
claiming a population of 5,000 and employing a superintendent, is 
not entitled to any allowance in the first instance until an enumera- 
tion of the inhabitants of such district has been made which shall 
show the population thereof to be at least 5,000. The expense of 
taking such enumeration is a charge upon the district in whose inter- 
est it is made, and must be paid upon the certificate of the Commis- 
sioner of Education. In a union free-school district whose bound- 
aries are coterminous with the boundaries of an incorporated vil- 
lage and last federal or State census of such village may be used. 

District and Teachers' Quotas. — A district or city, to be 
entitled to a district quota, must have had school taught therein by 
a duly licensed teacher (or by successive duly licensed teachers) 
for at least one hundred and eighty days, inclusive of legal holidays, 
and exclusive of Saturdays. Attendance at teachers' conferences 



STATE SCHOOL MONEYS 155 

held within the county by the district superintendent, not exceeding 
six days during the year, may also be included. It is unlawful to 
count any Saturday as a part of the one hundred and eighty days 
of school required, and it is also unlawful to have school in session 
on a legal holiday, except general election day, Lincoln's Birthday 
and Washington's Birthday.* 

For every additional duly licensed teacher (or successive duly 
licensed teachers) employed the required time of one hundred and 
eighty days, the district, city or orphan asylum shall be entitled to 
one teacher's quota. 

The amount of a district quota is as follows: Each district 
having an assessd valuation of $20,000 or less, $200; each district 
having an assessed valuation of $40,000 or less but more than 
$20,000, $175 ; each district having an assessed valuation of $60,000 
or less but more than $40,000, $150; each district having an assessed 
valuation greater than $60,000, each orphan asylum having a school 
conforming to the regulations governing the public schools system 
and each city of the State, $125. Each Indian reservation receives 
a quota of $150 for each teacher employed therein for a period of> 
thirty-two weeks or more. 

Tne amount of a teacher's quota for each city and district is $100. 

The distinction between a district quota and a teacher's quota 



* Legal Holidays. — The following days are legal holidays in this State : 

January i^-New Years Day. 

Februarj'' 12 — Lincoln's Birthday. 

February 22 — Washington's Birthday. 

May 30 — Memorial Day. 

July 4 — Independence Day, 

First Monday in September — Labor Day. 

October 12 — Columbus Day. 

First Tuesday after first Monday in November — General Election. 

Last Thursday in November — Thanksgiving Day. 

December 25 — Christmas Day. 

The first Thursday in June in each 5^ear, except in those years when the 
first Thursday in June occurs in the same week with Memorial Day, and in 
such years the second Thursday in June is known as Anniversary Day, and 
celebrated in commemoration of the organization of Sunday Schools, and 
is a holiday in all public schools in the borough of Brooklyn, City of Ne-v^ 
York. 

If a legal holiday occurs on Sunday, the day following is observed and 
considered in all respects as a legal holiday. 



156 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

should be clearly understood. An examination of section 491, 
Education Law, may give a clearer understanding. 

When two or more districts are consolidated, the consolidated 
district is entitled to receive a quota equal to the aggregate amount 
of the quotas paid to the several districts before consolidation. 

Training Class Quota. — A school maintaining a training class 
under the regulations of the Department is entitled to a quota of 
$700. Such school would also be entitled to include in the number 
of teachers reported to the Department as employed 180 days or 
more the training class teacher and would be entitled to a teachers' 
quota of $100 for such teacher. 

Industrial Education Quota. — The amount of the quota to a 
city or district for maintaining a vocational school, trade school, 
agricultural school, domestic economy school, etc., is two-thirds of 
the salary paid the first teacher, or an amount not to exceed $1,000. 
A district or city paying a vocational teacher $1,200 would be 
entitled to receive from the State a quota of $800 ; a district or city 
paying a salary of $1,500 or $1,800 would be entitled to receive from 
the State a quota of $1,000. (See chapter 22 on Industrial E!duca- 
tion.) 

For each additional teacher employed in such schools a quota of 
one-third of the amount of the salary paid such teacher, but not 
exceeding $1,000, is apportioned. 

Director Agriculture Quota. — A city, town or union free-school 
district which employes a director of agricultural education under 
rules of the Regents is entitled to a quota of one-half the salary 
of such director, but not to exceed $600. 

Physical Education Quota. — A city, town or union free-school 
district is entitled to a quota of one-half the salary paid to each 
teacher or supervisor of physical education who is employed in such 
city, town or district in accordance with Regents rules. The 
amount of each quota shall in no case exceed $600. 

Additional Apportionment to Cities, Academic Departments 
and Libraries, — To each city, town, union school district, and 
nonsectarian academy for each academic department maintained 
therein, $100. 

To each nonsectarian private academy for approved books, repro- 
duction of standard works of art and apparatus an amount equal to 
the amount raised from local sources but not to exceed $250. 

To each city for approved books, reproduction of standard works 



STATE SCHOOL MONEYS 157 

of art and apparatus an allowance not to exceed $i8 and two 
dollars additional for each duly licensed -teacher employed therein 
for the legal term and $250 for each academic department. 

To each union school district maintaining an academic depart- 
ment for approved books, reproduction of standard works of art 
and apparatus an allowance equal to the amount raised from local 
sources but not to exceed $268 annually and two dollars additional 
for each teacher employed in the district for the legal term. 

To all other school districts for approved books, reproduction of 
standard works of art, geographical maps and a globe an allowance 
not to exceed $18 annually and two dollars additional for each duly 
licensed teacher employed in the district for the legal term. 

The amount of tuition paid by the State for nonresident tuition 
in high schools or academic departments is $20 per year for not less 
than thirty-two weeks. (See chapter 18.) 

The amount appropriated for attendance is then apportioned to 
the high schools and the academic departments on the basis of 
attendance of the pupils therein during the preceding year. 

Application of State School Funds. — All moneys apportioned 
to a school district or city by the Commissioner of Education as 
described in the preceding paragraphs, must be used by such dis- 
trict or city for the payment of the salaries of duly licensed teachers 
employed in such district or city, or for tuition and transportation 
of pupils. It is a misdemeanor for school authorities to use this 
money for any other purpose. 

Allowance to Excluded Districts. — When a school district 
has been excluded from participation in any apportionment by 
failing to make a report required by law or by failing to comply 
with any other provision of law or with any regulation of the Com- 
missioner of Education which he has authority to adopt, he may, 
in his discretion, when it shall be shown to his satisfaction that 
such omission was accidental or excusable, allow such district an 
equitable apportionment. If the apportionment was made by the 
Commissioner of Education, he may cause an equitable apportion- 
ment to be allowed such district to be paid out of the contingent 
fund; and if the apportionment was made by the district superin- 
tendent, he has authority to direct them to apportion such allow- 
ance to the district at their next annual apportionment. Such allow- 
ance must be in addition to any apportionment to which such district 
may then be entitled. ,, 



158 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

May Withhold School Moneys. — The Commissioner of Edu- 
cation may withhold the school money due a district or city for 
willful violation of a provision of law 6r a regulation of the Depart- 
ment, He may also withhold one-half the money due a city, town 
or district for failure to enforce the compulsory education law. 

May Direct Payment of Quota when Teacher was not 
Qualified. — Where a teacher has been employed who was not 
duly qualified, the Commissioner of Education may, in his dis- 
cretion, upon the recommendation of the district superintendent 
having jurisdiction over the district in which such teacher was 
employed, direct that the money equitably apportioned to such dis- 
trict shall be paid to such teacher in satisfaction of his or her 
wages. 

May Reclaim Moneys Apportioned. — Whenever money shall 
have been 'apportioned to a county, part of county, or school dis- 
trict to which it was not entitled, and when such money shall not 
have been expended, the Commissioner of Education may reclaim 
such money or excess by directing that such money shall be paid 
by any ofhcer in whose hands it may be, into the State treasury. 
Such money when reclaimed shall be credited to the free-school 
fund. If such money shall have been expended so that it shall be 
impracticable to reclaim it, the Commissioner of Education shall 
deduct such amount from the portions of the county or district 
which received it, in his next annual apportionment. 

Supplemental Apportionment. — Whenever a school district 
or county shall have received by apportionment a less sum than it is 
entitled to, the Commissioner may make a supplementary appor-^ 
tionment to make up such deficiency, which apportionment shall be 
payable out of the contingent fund. If this fund is not sufficient 
for the purpose, the Commissioner shall supply such deficiency in 
his next annual apportionment. 

Certificate of Aportionment. — As soon as possible after the 
Commissioner of Education has made an annual apportionment, he 
should file with the county clerk, the county treasurer, the district 
superintendents, and the city treasurers or chamberlains, of every 
county and city of the State, a certificate of apportionment for their 
county or city. When the Commissioner makes a supplemental 
apportionment, he should file a certificate of such apportionment 
with the county clerk, the county treasurer, and the district super- 



STATE SCHOOL MONEYS 159 

intendents of the county in which the schoolhouses of the district 
are located. 

When School Moneys are Payable. — One-half of the school 
moneys are payable on or before the first day of March and the 
remaining part on or before the fifteenth day of May in each year. 

Apportionment by District Superintendent. — The district 
superintendents of each county are required to apportion on or 
before the fifteenth day of February in each year, the district, 
teachers' and supervision quotas. 

To Set Apart District Quotas. — The district superintendents 
should first set apart to each school district under their jurisdic- 
tion the district and teachers' quotas apportioned to such districts 
by the Commissioner of Education. They should also set apart to 
to each school district which did not share in the apportionment of 
the previous year, such sum as the Commissioner of Education shall 
have allowed it. 

Unexpended Moneys in Hands of Supervisors. — District 
superintendents should obtain from the supervisor of the town a 
report of the unexpended moneys which were in his hands on the 
first Tuesday of February, and which were applicable to the pay- 
ment of teachers' wages. The amount in each supervisor's hands 
is charged as a partial payment to his town on the amoi^nt due 
that town for district and teachers' quotas. 

Apportionment of Fines Held by County Treasurer. — The 
district superintendents should also obtain from the county treasurer 
a report of the amount of money paid to him from fines and penal- 
ties or obtained from any other source for the benefit of the schools 
of any town or for any district in the county. If any such money 
has been received by the county treasurer for a school district it 
shall be set aside by the superintendents and credited to such district. 
If such money has been received for the schools of a town, then it 
shall be placed to the credit of such town and shall be apportioned 
to school districts of such town with the other school moneys belong- 
ing to the town, and shall be used to pay the salaries of teachers. 

Superintendents' Certificate of Apportionment. — After having 
completed their apportionment, superintendents should make and 
sign two certificates showing the amount apportioned to each school 
district and part of a district, also the towns in which the districts 
are located and the source from which each item was derived. One 



l6o NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

of these certificates should be immediately filed with the county 
treasurer and the other with the Commissioner of Education, 

Superintendents', Certificate to Supervisors. — The superin- 
tendents should immediately after making an apportionment file 
with each supervisor, in their respective districts, a statement show- 
ing the amount apportioned to each town and the portions which 
such supervisors should pay to each school district or part of a 
district. 

Filing Certificate of Apportionment. — Upon receipt of the 
superintendents' certificate of apportionment, supervisors should 
make a copy thereof for their own use, and each should file the 
original in the town clerk's office of his town. 

Correcting Erroneous Apportionment. — The Commissioner of 
Education is required to correct any error made by himself or a 
district superintendent. If a district has not been paid its full 
share of funds the Commissioner of Education may apportion to 
such district from the contingent fund any balance to which it is 
entitled. If a district has been paid too much the Commissioner 
of Education should deduct from its next apportionment such sum 
as will properly correct the error made. 

Districts Entitled to Share in Apportionment.— ^ No district 
is entitled to share in the apportionment of school moneys unless 
the trustees' report for the preceding school year shows that a 
school was maintained in the district and taught by a qualified 
teacher for at least i8o days, inclusive of legal holidays, and of 
attendance upon teachers' conferences — which shall not exceed six 
days. 

Payment of School Moneys to Supervisors. — After the super- 
visor has given the required bond and the county treasurer has 
received the school money from the State Treasurer, such money 
is paid by the county treasurer to the supervisors of his county, 
who disbuse it as required by law. The county treasurer pays 
direct to city treasurers and to treasurers of union free-school dis- 
tricts having a population of 5,000 or more and to treasurers of 
town boards of education. 

For further information, see chapter on " Supervisors, County 
Treasurers, etc." 



REVIEW QUESTIONS l6l 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

What is the constitutional provision in relation to certain funds? What 
prohibition in relation to State aids? Name three sources from which the 
State has derived revenue for the support of the public school system. What 
is the Education Fund? When was the Common School Fund created? 
What led to its creation? How was it created? When was the first distribu- 
tion made? What was the amount of the revenue of this fund at that time? 
Upon what basis was it apportioned? What were counties required to do 
to participate in the distribution of this revenue? For what was the money 
derived from these two sources used? When this amount was insufficient to 
pay the salary of teachers, how was the balance raised? What was the 
capital of this fund in 1805? In 1901? What amount does the Legislature 
annually appropriate from this fund for common schools? 

When was the United States Deposit Fund created? By what body? 
How was it created? What amount did New York State receive? Was 
this fund given or loaned to the State ? Could this money be recalled ? What 
provision does the State constitution make in relation to this fund? What 
disposition was made of this money in 1857? What officers have charge of 
this money? How are they chosen? What do they do with this money? 
In 1858 what amount from the revenue of this fund was appropriated by the 
State Legislature? For what period was this amount appropriated? What 
amount has been appropriated since i88i ? How is the amount appropriated 
now used? What caused the reduction in the revenue from this fund? 

What is the Free-School Fund? How is the amount annually appro- 
priated determined? When was this fund created? What amount was 
appropriated that j^ear? In what year was the increase greatest? Why? 
What increase was made? What was the evident intent of the Legislature 
when it made this increase? Does the fund do this? How is the deficiency 
raised? What was the cost of maintaining the school system of the State 
in the year ending July 31, 1909? How was this money raised? Explain the 
origin of Gospel and School lands. How was the revenue derived from 
this source used? What amount was realized in 1910? How many counties 
now receive revenue from this fund? Trace the origin and purpose of the 
literature fund. What constitute the State school moneys? 

Upon what basis is an apportionment made to cities and villages for 
supervision? For what purposes must this money be used? What is neces- 
sary to entitle a city, village or district to an allowance for a superintendent? 
What is a supervision quota? 

When is an enumeration of the inhabitants necessary? How is the expense 
of an enumeration paid? Under whose certificate? When does the Commis- 
sioner of Education make the apportionment? What are district quotas? 
What are teachers' quotas? Upon what basis are district quotas appor- 
tioned? What entitles a district to a district quota? May legal holidays be 
included as any part of the 160 days that schools are required to be taught 
in order to entitle a district to a quota? May Saturdays? May a school 
be lawfully in session on a legal holiday? Name the legal holidays in this 
State. When is a district entitled to more than one quota? How many 
II 



l62 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

quotas may a district receive? On what basis are quotas apportioned to 
cities? What is the basis of apportionment to a consolidated district? What 
is the amount of a training claass quota? 

What is the amount of a quota for a school maintained under the 
industrial education law? What is the basis of apportionment for a director 
of agriculture? Of physical training? What additional quota is apportioned 
feach city, town or union free-school district for an academic department? 
What apportionment to a non-sectarian academy? To a city for approved 
books? What additional apportionment is made to union free-schoo! districts 
for books? What to other districts? What apportionment is made non- 
resident tuition? For attendance? For what purpose must school moneys 
apportioned by the Commissioner of Education be used? What is the penalty 
for using them otherwise? 

For wh^t reasons may a school district be excluded from participating in 
an apportionment? How may an allowance be made in such cases? If the 
apportionment has been made, how may the allowance be made? When may 
the Commissioner of Education withhold the money due a district or city? 
What portion may be withheld from a town? When? What authority has 
the Commissioner of Education in cases where a district or town is not 
entitled to a quota by reason of having employed an unqualified teacher? How 
may that which has been wrongly apportioned be reclaimed ? What disposition 
is made of such money when recovered? If such money has been expended 
and cannot be reclaimed, what should be done? What is done with the 
money thus deducted? 

What is the remedy -ivhen a school district has not received its just appor- 
tionment? What if this fund is insufficient? With what officers should 
the Commissioner of Education file a certificate of his annual apoprtionment? 
What certificate should he file of supplemental apportionments? When does 
the law provide that school moneys shall be payable? To- whom? 

When do district superintendents apportion school money? What moneys 
diould they first set apart? How do district superintendents ascertain the 
amount of unexpended moneys in the hands of supervisors? What is done' 
with this money? Are these moneys returned by supervisors? How are 
such cases adjusted? How do superintendents ascertain the amount of fines 
and penalties? How should records of these matters be kept? How should 
such moneys be apportioned? 

What certificate must the superintendents file with the county treasurer 
and the Commissioner of Education? What statement should a superin- 
tendent file with supervisors of the towns of his district? What should 
supervisors do with such statements? How may an erroneous apportion- 
ment be corrected? What school districts are entitled to share in an appor- 
tionment? What districts are not? From whom does the county treasurer 
obtain the school money? To whom does the county treasurer pay it? 
What does that officer do with it? 



CHAPTER XVIII 

COURSES OF STUDY, SUBJECTS INCLUDED, ETC. PHYSIOLOGY AND 

HYGIENE HUMANE TREATMENT OF ANIMALS AND BIRDS 

[Articles lo and ii] 

Authority to Adopt Courses of Study. — The town board of 
education is given the authority to estabhsh elementary schools, 
high schools, vocational, industrial, agricultural and home-making 
schools or classes, night schools and any other schools or classes 
necessary to meet the needs and demands of the town. Such board 
is also authorized to prescribe courses of study for such schools or 
classes. 

The authority to prescribe courses of study in a union free-school 
district is vested in the board of education of such district. 

Subjects That Must be Included in Such Courses. — There is 
no direct provision of law naming the subjects that shall constitute 
courses of study prepared by boards of education. The only express 
provisions of law requiring that any subject shall be taught are those 
requiring that physiology and hygiene with special reference to the 
effects of stimulants and narcotics shall be taught in all public 
schools, physical education and instruction relative to the humane 
treatment and protection of animals and birds. 

The Compulsory Education Law provides that the children who 
are required by that law to attend upon instruction shall be taught 
in English in the branches of reading, spelling, writing, arithmetic, 
English language, and geography. 

The board of education of each union free-school district or 
town must include in its course of study these subjects and in addi- 
tion thereto the subject of physiology and hygiene as required by 
law, and the care and protection of animals and birds; and such 
subjects must be taught in all public schools. 

Other Subjects May be Included. — Boards of education have 
the authority to include in their course of study other subjects not 
named in the preceding paragraph. In arranging such courses they 

163 



164 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

should exercise proper discretion. If trustees abuse the power 
granted them in this respect and include subjects not practical and 
not for the best educational interests of the district, an appeal 
should be taken to the Commissioner of Education, who has the 
authority to order that such subejcts shall not be included in a course 
of study. 

Authority of Teachers. — A teacher has no authority in arrang- 
ing courses of study and cannot direct what studies shall be pur- 
sued. This is a matter resting solely with the board of education. 

Boards of education generally refer to teachers the preparation of 
courses of study. 

Authority of Parents. — Parents cannot direct what subjects shall 
be included in a course of study or what subjects their children 
shall pursue. When a child is admitted to any public school such 
child must pursue the course of study prescribed by the legal 
authorities of such school. 

PHYSIOLOGY AND HYGIENE 
[Article 26] 

Character of Instruction. — The law provides that the nature 
of alcoholic drinks and other narcotics and their effects on the 
human system shall be taught as thoroughly as other subjects are 
taught in all schools under State control or supported in whole or 
in part by the public money of the State. Such instruction must 
also be given in schools connected with refermatory institutions. 
This instruction must be given in connection with the various 
divisions of physiology and hygiene. 

Who Shall Receive Instruction. — The pupils in all schools 
described in the preceding paragraph who are below the second 
year of the high school and above the third year of school work, 
counting from the lowest primary, but not including the kinder- 
garten, or who are in corresponding classes in ungraded schools, 
must study and must be taught this subject from suitable textbooks. 
All pupils who come within these provisions must be supplied with 
suitable textbooks. 

All pupils in the three lowest primary school years, not including 
kindergarten, must receive oral instruction. 

Period of Instruction. — The official ruling on the subject has 
always been as follows : 



COURSES OF STUDY 165 

All pupils above the third year or grade, and below the second year of 
the high school, must study the subject from suitable textbooks for not less 
than three lessons a zveek for ten or more weeks, or the equivalent of the 
same in each year. This requires thirty lessons during the school year, 
which may be given at any time in the discretion of the local school authori- 
ties. Any plan may be adopted which will complete thirty lessons within the 
school year. 

Where there are nine or more years below the high school, the instruction 
may be omitted above the eighth year and below the high school. 

Note. — All pupils in the lowest three primary (not kindergarten) school 
years shall be instructed in this subject orally for not less than two lessons 
a week for ten weeks or the equivalent of the same in each year. This 
requires twenty lessons during each school year, arranged in the discretion of 
local school authorities. 

Textbooks. — All textbooks used must be graded to the capaci- 
ties of fourth year, intermediate, grammar, and high school pupils, 
or to corresponding classes in ungraded schools. For students be- 
low the high-school grade, all textbooks must give at least one-fifth 
their space, and for pupils of the high-school grade, not less than 
twenty pages, to the " nature and effects of alcoholic drinks and 
other narcotics." This subject must be considered in connection 
with each division of physiology and hygiene. Pages in a separate 
chapter at the end of a book cannot be considered in determining 
the minimum pages which a book must contain. 

A textbook which does not comply with these provisions cannot 
legally be used. 

Regents' Examinations. — All Regents' examinations in physi- 
ology and hygiene must include a proportionate number of questions 
on the nature of alcoholic drinks and other narcotics and their 
effects on the human system. 

Instruction in Normal School and Training Classes. — All 
normal schools and training classes in the State must give proper 
time and attention to the best methods of teaching this subject. 

Duty of Teacher.— It is the duty of every teacher to teach 
this subject as required by law, and the Commissioner of Education, 
on satisfactory evidence that any teacher has willfully refused to 
teach the subject, is required to revoke the license of such teacher. 

No teacher can receive a certificate to teach who does not pass a 
satisfactory examination in the subject and the best methods of 
teaching it. 



1 66 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Apportionment of' Public Money. — Before any city can re- 
ceive any of the public money of the State, the superintendent of 
schools of such city must file an affidavit with the city treasurer or 
chamberlain, and a copy thereof with the Commissioner of Educa- 
tion, that he has made an investigation into the facts and that to 
the best of his knowledge and belief all the provisions of this law 
have been complied with in the schools under his supervision. 

A. similar affidavit must be made by the president of the board 
of education of eaCh union free-school district and of each town 
and filed with the district superintendents having jurisdiction before 
the schools under the control of such boards shall be apportioned 
public money. 

Duties of School Officers. — The law directs that local school 
authorities must provide the necessary facilities and a definite time 
and place for this branch in the regular courses of study. Under 
this provision of law the Commissioner of Education has ruled that 
where school patrons are unable or unwilling to buy necessary text- 
books the local authorities may purchase such books at the expense 
of the district. 

Withholding Public Money. — Where it is established to the 
satisfaction of the Commissioner of Education, upon appeal, that 
any city or school district has failed to comply with the provisions 
of thisNaw, he is required to withhold the public money of such 
city or district until it meets the requirements of the law. 

Religious Exercises in Schools. — Religious exercises of any 
character cannot lawfully be conducted in any public school. No 
pupil can lawfully be compelled to remain in school during a 
religious exercise, nor can a pupil be compelled to take part in any 
religious exercise. No part of the time prescribed for a public 
school to be in session can lawfully be devoted to religious exer- 
cises of any kind. Reading the Bible or repeating a prayer is a 
religious exercise. These statements are based upon the uniform 
rulings and decisions of the State Superintendents of New York 
State, and'the Commissioner of Education. 

In many cases all the patrons of a school are willing that religious 
exercises should be held. In any such case, it has been the policy 
of the Education Department not to interfere in any way with the 
holding of such exercises. 

Where a portion of the patrons of a school desire the observance 
of religious exercises and pupils assemble in the schoolroom pre- 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 167 

vious to the regular hour for opening school, and no objection is 
made by any taxable inhabitant of the district, such exercises may 
be conducted, provided all pupils are permitted to act their pleasure 
in regard to attendance thereon, and, provided the exercises are not 
continued beyond the hour at which the school should regularly 
convene. Whenever any dissensions would arise from conducting 
religious exercises on this plan, such exercises should not be held. 

Humane Treatment and Protection of Animals and Birds. — i. 
Boards of education in cities, union free-school districts and towns 
are required to include in their courses of study provision for in- 
struction in the humane treatment and protection of animals and 
birds and the important part they play in the economy of nature. 

2. The Board of Regents is required to prescribe the period of 
time which shall be devoted to instruction in such subject each year. 
Instruction in such subject may be correlated with instruction in 
literature, reading, language, nature study or ethnology. 

3. If the instruction required under this law is not given the 
public money of the district, city or town may be withheld. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

Who have the authority to adopt courses of study for schools under the 
town board? For union free-school districts? Does the law provide what 
subjects shall be taught in common schools? What one subject must be 
taught? What subjects does the compulsory education act provide shall be 
taught to children who are required to attend upon instruction? What 
subjects, then, must be included in courses of study? In what schools must 
such subjects be taught? May other subjects be included? What is the 
remedy if trustees include subjects unreasonable, impracticable, etc.? What 
authority have teachers in arranging courses of study? What authority have 
parents? Can p^^rents direct what subjects their children shall pursue in a 
public school? 

In what schools must the subject of physiology and hygiene be taught? 
What is the provision of law relative to teaching about alcoholic drinks? 
What pupils must study the subject in graded schools? In ungraded schools? 
What abount kindergarten pupils? What pupils must use textbooks? What 
pupils must receive oral instruction? What period of instruction from text- 
books must each pupil receive? What is the official ruling on this question? 
What is the ruling relative to oral expression? How must textbooks be 
graded? What portion of textbooks for pupils below the high school grade 
must be given to this subject? For pupils above the high school grade? 
How must matters relating to this subject be distributed in textbooks? What 
is the law relating to pages on this subject which are put at the end of a 
book? What are the requirements in relation to Regents' examinations? 



l68 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

What in relation to normal schools and training classes? What is the 
duty of a teacher in relation to teaching this subject? What is the duty 
of the Commissioner of Education in case a teacher refuses to teach the 
subject? What is required of a teacher under this law in order to obtain 
a certificate? What action must be taken by city authorities before cities 
can receive any of the State funds? By union free-school authorities? By 
town authorities ? What is the duty of school officers under this law? Under 
what circumstances may school authorities purchase textbooks? What is the 
duty of the Commissioner of Education when any city, district or town fails 
to comply with any of the provisions of this law? 

Can religious exercises be lawfully conducted in any public school? Can 
pupils be required to remain in school during a religious exercise? Can a 
pupil be compelled to take part in any religious exercise? Can any portion 
of the time prescribed for public school work be devoted to religious exer- 
cises ? Is reading the Bible or repeating a prayer a religious exercise ? 

Under what conditions might religious exercises be conducted in a public 
school? What provision does the law make in relation to instruction in 
humane treatment and protection of animals and birds? 



CHAPTER XIX 

INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION 

[Article 22] 

Schools Which May be Established. — Under the industrial 
education law the following schools may be established : 

1. General industrial schools. These are also called vocational 
schools. 

2. Trade schools. 

3. Schools of agriculture, mechanic arts and home making. 
Under this class of schools it is intended that special courses in 
agriculture shall not only be established for boys but that special 
courses in home making shall be established for girls. 

4. Part-time or continuation schools. These schools are to 
afford instruction in the trades and in industrial, agricultural and 
home-making subjects for children who are regularly and lawfully 
employed during a part of the day. It is intended that the school 
work shall be supplementary to the practical work which the chil- 
dren attending such schools perform in their regular employment. 

5. Evening vocational schools. These schools are to afford 
instruction in the trades and in industrial, agricultural and home^ 
making subjects for children regularly and lawfully employed dur- 
ing the day, and also for all women who are employed in any capac- 
ity during the day. The instruction in these schools is to supple- 
ment the work which those attending such schools perform during 
the day. 

Where Such Schools May be Established. — Such schools 
may be established in any city of the State, in any union free-school 
district, and in any town. 

By Whom Established. — In a city any of such schools may 
be established by the board of education. If a city has no board of 
education such schools may be established by the officer having the 
management and supervision of the public school system. Such 
board or officer may establish as many of each of the different 

169 



I/O NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

classes of such schools as the interests of the city require, providing 
the municipal authorities furnish the necessary funds therefor. 

In a union free-school district not under the township law the 
people must vote upon the establishment of any of such schools at a 
district meeting. If a meeting authorizes the organization of any 
of such schools it becomes the duty of the board of education to 
establish them. 

A town board of education may without vote of the people of 
the town establish one of such schools in a school district in the 
town where such school will best serve the interests of the entire 
town. 

Who May Attend Such Schools. — Pupils who have completed 
the elementary school course or those who have not completed such 
course but who are fourteen years of age may enter general indus- 
trial or vocational schools. 

Part-time or continuation schools are open to all children over 
fourteen years of age who are lawfully employed during a part of 
the day. Evening vocational schools are open to pupils over sixteen 
years of age legally employed during the day, and to all women 
employed in any capacity during the day. 

Pupils who are sixteen years of age and who have completed 
either the elementary school course or a course in an industrial or 
vocational school or have met such other requirements as the local 
school authorities have prescribed may enter trade schools. 

Pupils who have completed the elementary school course or those 
who are fourteen years of age or those who satisfy such other 
requirements as the local school authorities prescribe may enter 
agricultural schools or home making schools. 

Authority Over Such Schools. — The board of education in 
a city or in a city not having a board of education the officer having 
the management and supervision of the public schools and the board 
of education in a union free-school district or town have respectively 
the same power and authority over the management and control of 
such schools and the teachers and other employees therein as such 
board or officer has over the other public schools and teachers under 
their direction. Such boards or officer are particularly charged 
with the power and authority : 

1. To employ competent teachers or instructors. 

2. To provide proper courses of study. 

3. To purchase or acquire sites and grounds and to purchase, 



INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION I7I 

acquire, lease or construct and to repair suitable shops or buildings 
and to properly equip the same. 

4. To purchase necessary machinery, tools, apparatus and 
supplies. 

State Aid. — The amount apportioned by the Commissioner of 
Education to a city or district for maintaining one of these schools 
is a sum equal to two-thirds the salary paid the teacher employed, 
but such sum shall not exceed one thousand dollars. To entitle a 
district or city to share in State funds it must meet the following 
requirements : 

1. Maintain an independently organized school for a period of 
at least thirty-six weeks. This does not necessarily mean that such 
school shall be in a building separate from the regular public school 
■building. 

2. There must be an enrollment of at least fifteen pupils. 

3. A course of study approved by the Commissioner of Educa- 
tion must be maintained. 

4. One teacher must be employed who devotes his time exclu- 
sively to the work of such school. 

A city or district is also entitled to receive an additional sum of 
one-third the salary paid to each additional teacher employed who 
also gives his whole time to the work of such school for a period 
of thirty-six weeks. When the district makes a contract with a 
teacher for the entire year and such teacher is employed for that 
period, the Commissioner of Education shall make an additional 
apportionment to such city or district of the sum of two hundred 
dollars, but the total amount apportioned in each yefer on account of 
each teacher employed shall not exceed one thousand dollars. 

The law explicitly provides that manual training high schools 
shall not be allowed to participate in this apportionment of funds. 

Pro Rata Apportionment. — If a city or district shall main- 
tain a school or employ a teacher for a shorter period than thirty- 
six weeks the Commissioner of Education may in his discretion 
apportion to such city or district an amount pro rata to the time 
such school was in session or such teacher was employed. 

Application of State Funds. — All funds apportioned to a city 
or district for the maintenance of these schools must be used exclu- 
sively for the support and maintenance of such schools in such city 
or district. 



172 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Annual Estimates and Appropriations. — The board of edu- 
cation in a city or in a city not having a board of education the 
officer having the management and supervision of the pubHc schools 
is required to file a written itemized estimate of the expenditures 
for the maintenance of any of these schools and the estimated 
amount the city will receive from the State applicable to the support 
*,of these schools. Such estimate must be filed with the common 
council of the city within thirty days after the commencement of 
the fiscal year of such city. The common council may give a hear- 
ing to any person so desiring and shall then adopt such estimate, 
after deducting therefrom the estimated amount from the State 
applicable to the support of such schools. The common council 
may by a two-thirds vote reduce the amount of an item or reject 
an item. 

The amount of such estimate adopted by the common council shall 
be levied and assessed by tax upon the taxable property of the city 
at the time and in the manner that other taxes for school purposes 
are raised. 

The board of education in a union free-school district or of a 
town which maintains one or more of these schools should include 
in the estimate of expenses for the ensuing school year which it 
submits to the annual meeting the amount required to maintain 
these schools after deducting the amount apportioned to the district 
for the support of such schools. Such amount must be raised at 
the same time and in the same manner, that other taxes for school 
purposes in such district are raised. 

Advisory Board. — Cities maintaining any of these schools 
are required to appoint an advisory board. Union free-school dis- 
tricts or towns do not have such advisory board. This board is 
appointed by the board of education or in a city having no board 
of education by the officer having the management and supervision 
"of the public schools in such city. Such advisory board shall con- 
sist of five members and shall represent the local trades, industries 
and occupations. When such board is first appointed the terms of 
two of such members shall be for one year and the terms of three 
shall be for two years. Thereafter as the terms of such members 
expire the vacancies caused thereby shall be filled for a full term of 
two ye^rs. Any other vacancy on such board shall be filled for the 
remainder of the unexpired term. 

The members of this board are to advise and counsel with the 



INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION I73 

# 

members of the board of education or other officer exercising 
similar powers in relation to their duties to such schools. 

Courses for Training Teachers. — The Commissioner of Edu- 
cation is authorized to approve courses in the State agriculture 
schools at Alfred university, St. Lawrence university and at Morris- 
ville for the training of teachers in agriculture, mechanic arts, 
domestic science or home making. When such approved courses 
are maintained such schools are entitled to receive an apportionment 
from State funds on the same basis that an apportionment is made 
to union free-school districts for maintaining an industrial or agri- 
cultural school. The Commissioner of Education may prescribe 
regulations under which the graduates of such approved courses 
may be licensed to teach like special courses in the public schools. 

Smith-Hughes Vocational Law. — This is a law enacted by 
Congress and provides for federal grants for vocational education 
in the several States of the Union. One of the main purposes of 
this act is to bring cooperation between the States of the Union and 
the nation in the promotion of vocational education. It is proposed 
that under this law the national government shall appropriate for 
the year 19 17-18 $1,700,000, to be apportioned among the several 
States of the Union. On the basis on which it is proposed to make 
these appropriations the amount appropriated for the year 1925-26 
by the United States would be $7,200,000. These appropriations 
are made for four specific purposes as follows : 

1. Toward the salaries for teachers of agriculture. 

2. Toward the salaries for teachers of trade and industrial 
schools. 

3. Toward the training of teachers for vocational work. 

4. An annual appropriation of $200,000 each year for^the federal 
board which is charged with the administration of this work. 

The maximum appropriations are to be reached ki 1925-26, and 
thereafter the appropriations will annually be the amount fixed for 
these years. These amounts are as follows: 

For the purpose specified in paragraph i — $3,000,000 
" " " " " " 2 — $3,000,000 

" " " " " " 3— $1,000,000 

"■ " " " " " 4 — $ 200,000 

In order that a State may participate in this appropriation of 
federal funds the Legislature of the State is required to 



174 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

1. Accept by legislative act the provisions of the federal bill. 

2. Accept by legislative act the benefits of all the funds, or of 
such fund as the State desires to use. 

3. Establish a State board of control. 

4. Designate the State Treasurer as custodian of the fund. 
The Legislature of the State of New York in 1917 enacted a 

law designating the State Board of Regents as the State board of 
control to cooperate with the federal board of control, and the 
Legislature also formally declared in this same law its desire to 
accept the benefit of all the funds and purposes for which appro- 
priations are made. The State Treasurer, as required under the 
federal act, was designated as the custodian of the fund. 

The federal board has only recently been organized and has just 
assumed the administration of this important function of public 
education. No precedents are yet established and no formal rulings 
of the board have yet been made as to any of the questions which 
shall come before it. 

The work which a State is doing either in 'the training of teachers 
or in the courses of instruction which are being given in trade and 
industrial schools, agricultural schools, and in training teachers for 
vocational work, must be approved by the national board. The 
advanced work which the State of New York is now doing in all 
these lines s'hould be sufficient guarantee that the courses given in 
the several cities in New York will be approved and the State receive 
a large benefit from this fund. 

Director of Agriculture. — The board of education of a town, 
union free-school district or city not maintaining a school of Agri- 
culture, mechanic arts and home-making may employ a director of 
agriculture. The. boards of education of two or more districts or 
towns may* jointly employ such director and share the expense 
incurred in the employment of such director. The Commissioner 
of Education is authorized to prescribe the qualifications of such 
director. 

State Aid. — The Commissioner of Education is authorized to 
apportion to each union free-school district, town or city which 
employs a qualified director of agriculture a quota equal to one-half 
of the salary paid such director, but in no case an amount to exceed 
six hundred dollars. If the salary paid such director is one thou- 
sand dollars, the State quota will be five hundred dollars. If the 
amount of such salary should be twelve hundred or fifteen hundred 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 175 

dollars, the State quota will be six hundred dollars. When two or 
more districts or towns employ such director jointly the State will 
apportion the amount of the quota to such district or towns in pro- 
portion to the amount paid by each toward the salary of such 
director. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

What schools may be established under the industrial education law? 
Where may such schools be established? By whom may they be established 
in a city? What action must be taken to establish them in certain union 
free-school districts? In other districts? Who may attend general indus- 
trial or vocational schools? Trade schools? Schools giving agriculture or 
domestic economy courses ? What general authority has the board of edu- 
cation over such schools? Name four specific duties which the law confers 
on a board in relation to these schools? What is the amount of State aid 
apportioned for the maintenance of one of these schools? Name four require- 
ments which a city district or town must satisfy to be entitled to State 
aid. What amount is allowed by the State for each additional teacher? 
Illustrate the apportionment of funds. Are manual training high schools 
allowed to participate in this apportionment of State funds? What pro rata 
allowance may be apportioned ? By whom ? How must State funds obtained 
be used? What estimate must be filed for maintenance of these schools in a 
city? By whom? With whom? Where? How may this estimate be reduced 
or an item rejected? How is the amount adopted raised? Explain how an 
estimate is submitted in a union free-school district and the amount raised. 
Where are advisory boards appointed? By whom? How many members? 
What is the full term? How are vacancies filled? What should these mem- 
bers of such board represent? What are their duties? In what institutions 
may training courses for teachers be established? What courses? Who 
approves such courses? What certificates may be granted and in what 
manner? What allotment of State funds made? 

What is the federal vocational law? What is its purpose? What amount 
was appropriated by Congress in 1917? What amount does the bill call for 
in 1725-26? Name four specific purposes for which this money was appro- 
priated. Name the maximum amount to be appropriated for each of these 
purposes. Name the four conditions which a State must satisfy to be 
entitled to share in such funds. What action did the Legislature of New 
York take in 1917? 

Where may a director of agricultural education work be employed? What 
cooperation is authorized in employing such director? What qualifications 
must a director possess? What financial aid will the State give? 



CHAPTER XX 
♦textbooks, abror day, flag law, savings banks 

[Article 25] 

Adoption of Textbooks. — In a union free-school district hav- 
ing a population of 1,500 or more or employing fifteen teachers or 
more, and in a city, a board of education, is the proper authority 
to determine and adopt the textbooks that shall be used in the 
schools of such district or city. 

Change of Textbooks. — ^ After a textbook shall have been 
regularly adopted for the schools of such a union free-school district 
or city by the board of education, it is unlawful for such board to 
supersede the books thus adopted by any other book within a period 
of five years from the date on which such books were adopted, 
except by a three-fourths vote of the members of such board. 

The township law also modifies the method of adopting textbooks 
in the schools under the control of a town board of education. 
The town board of education prescribes the textbooks which shall 
be used in the schools of the town. A majority vote is sufficient to 
determine on the adoption of textbooks. A town board cannot 
change a textbook which has been adopted within a period of five 
years except by a three-fourths vote of the members of such board. 

After a textbook regularly adopted has been in use in a union 
free-school district or city for five or more years, such book may 
be superseded by another book, by a majority vote of the members 
of the board of education having jurisdiction. In a school district 
under the control of a town board of education, after a textbook, 
regularly adopted, has been in use for five or more years, it may be 
superseded by another book, by a two-thirds vote of the legal voters 
of the town present and voting at any annual school meeting. 

Penalty for Violations. — Any person or persons guilty of a 
violation of the provisions stated in either of the foregoing para- 



* See Chapter 653, Laws of 1913, as to special act authorizing uniform text- 
books for St. Lawrence County. 

176 



TEXTBOOKS, ARBOR DAY, FLAG LAW, SAVINGS BANKS I^/ 

graphs, is liable to a fine of not less, than $50 nor more than $100 
for each offence. 

Fine, How Collected. — Any tax-payer may sue any person 
guilty of a violation of these provisions before a justice of the peace. 
Such fine, when collected, should be paid to the collector or treasurer 
of the district in which such violation occurred, and used for the 
benefit of the schools of such district. 

Supplying Pupils with Textbooks. — A meeting of a union 
free-school district may vote an appropriation for supplying indigent 
pupils with textbooks. When such action is taken by a district 
meeting, it is the duty of the board of education to provide books 
for such pupils. 

Free Textbooks in Certain Union Free Schools. — A majority 
of the legal voters of a union free-school district which has a popu- 
lation of 1,500 or more or employs fifteen teachers may decide to 
supply the pupils of such district with free textbooks. This ques- 
tion may be voted upon at a special meeting regularly called, or at 
an annual meeting when notice has been duly given that such vote 
will be taken. The vote must be by the ayes and noes and must be 
duly recorded. When the voters of a district have decided to fur- 
nish pupils free textbooks, the board of education of such district 
must supply all pupils within ninety days with free textbooks. 
The board of education has authority to prescribe regulations for 
the care, use, and distribution of books. 

Free Textbooks in Towns.— The question is frequently 
raised as to whether or not free textbooks may be provided for the 
schools of the town. A town board of education may submit such 
question to the voters of the town and if the proposition receives 
a majority vote it becomes the duty of the town board to provide 
free textbooks. 

Before the enactment of the township system, union free-school 
districts could vote upon the adoption of free textbooks. Several 
of these districts authorized free books. It then became the duty 
of the board of education of such districts to furnish books free to 
the children of that district. The expense was a charge upon the 
district. The question is now raised as to whether or not a town 
board of education having jurisdiction over a union free-school 
district which authorized free textbooks may continue to provide 
such books. The township law makes it the duty of the town 
board of education to perform all duties and obligations which 
12 



178 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

former trustees or boards o£ education were required to perform. 
It is, therefore, the duty of the town -board to provide free text- 
books for the children of such districts. The expense incurred is, 
like all other school expenses, a town charge. It is within the 
power of a town board of education to submit to the voters of the 
town the proposition as to whether or not the town shall continue 
to supply free textbooks for the children of such union free-school 
districts. Until such action is taken and the previous authorization 
of free textbooks for such district is revoked, the town board should 
continue to supply free textbooks in such district. The town board - 
might also submit to the voters of the town the question of extend- 
ing free textbooks to all the schools of the town. This would 
appear to be the more logical and just procedure in cases of this 
kind. 

ARBOR DAY 
[Article 29] 

History. — ^Arbor Day In New York was created by chapter 
196 of thie Laws of 1888 and has been observed annually by the 
public schools of the State from that date. Since the establishment 
of this day the school children have planted on the schoorgrounds 
of the State about 200,000 trees and many plants and shrubs. 

Arbor Day originated in Nebraska in 1872, and is now observed 
by every State in the Union, 

State Tree. — In 1889 the vote of the school children of the 
State for a State tree resulted in the sugar maple's receiving a 
majority of all votes cast. Since that time th6 sugar maple has 
been considered the State tree. 

State Flow^er. — In 1890 State Superintendent Draper requested 
the school children of the State to vote -on Arbor Day for a State 
flower. One hundred and thirty different varieties received votes, 
and 318,079 votes were cast. The golden-rod received the greatest 
number of votes cast, 81,308, while the rose received 79,666 votes. 
As no flower received a majority of the votes cast, and as the vote 
for the golden-rod and the rose was so evenly divided. Superin- 
tendent Draper requested that a vote be taken on these two flowers 
on Arbor Day In 1891. This vote was taken, with the result that 
the rose received 294,816 votes and the golden-rod 206,402. The 
rose is therefore considered our State flower. New York was the 



TEXTBOOKS, ARBOR DAY, FLAG LAW, SAVINGS BANKS I79 

first State in the Union to take action toward the establishment of 
-a State flower. 

Best American Nature Poem. — On Arbor Day of iSqi the 
teachers of the State, in response to a request of the State Superin- 
tendent that they express their choice by vote for the best American 
poem on nature or trees, selected Bryant's Forest Hymn by a 
majority of 156 votes. Bryant's Thanatopsis was second choice. 

Date. — Arbor Day occurred for many years on the Friday fol- 
lowing the first day of May. In 1916 the law was amended by 
providing that the date of Arbor Day should be fixed by proclama- 
tion of the Commissioner of Education. In 1917 the Commissioner 
of Education issued a proclamation fixing the following dates to be 
observed as Arbor Day: Southeastern part of State, April 20; 
central and western sections of the State, April ^y ; northern part 
of the State, May 4. " 

Duty of School Authorities. — The law makes it the duty of the 
school authorities of every public school in the State " to observe 
this day prop'efly by assembling the pupils in the school building 
or elsewhere for the purpose of holding, under the general direction 
of the city superintendent or district superintendent, exercises which 
s'hall tend to encourage the planting, protection, and preservation of 
trees and shrubs, and an acquaintance with the best methods to be 
adopted to accomplish such results." 

Program of Exercises. — The Commissioner of Education is' 
reqiiired to prepare a program of exercises and instruction for use 
in the public schools on Arbor Day and to cause the same to be 
distributed throughout the districts of the State. 

Distribution of Program. — It is the duty of district superin- 
tendents and city superintendents to provide each of the schools 
under their supervision with as many copies of the program pre- 
pared by the Commissioner of Education as may be available. 
District superintendents may deposit with each board of education 
the programs for the schools under the direction of such board, 
and it is the duty of such board to deliver such programs to the 
teachers in charge of the schools. 



l80 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

FLAG LAW 

[Article 27] 

The Legislature of 1895 passed an act making it the duty of 
the school authorities of each school district and city in the 
State to supply a United States flag, flag-staff, and other neces- 
sary appliances for each of the schoolhouses under their super- 
vision. This flag should be displayed upon or near the school- 
house during school hours and at any other time when so directed 
by the school authorities. 

In cities and union free-school districts this duty rests with 
boards of education, and in all other districts with the town 
board of education. This matter is not left to the discretion of 
thes^ officers, as the law is mandatory and a failure to comply 
with its provisions is sufficient cause for removal from office. 

If a schoolhouse is not supplied with a flag and the necessary 
appliances, or if such flag and appliances have been lost or 
destroyed, the board of education should purchase a flag and pay 
the expense of the same out of available funds. School author- 
ities may pursue this course without being directed to do so by 
a district or town meeting. 

The Commissioner of Education is required to prepare for the 
use of the public schools of the State a program providing for 
a salute of the flag at the opening of each day of school and 
to provide for such other patriotic exercises as he may deem to 
be expedient. He is also required to provide for the observance 
of Lincoln's Birthday, Washington's Birthday, Memorial Day, 
Flag Day, and other similar legal holidays. To meet this demand 
an unusually attractive and interesting volume on the history 
of the flag has been issued and a copy placed in every school- 
house in the State. 

SCHOOL SAVINGS BANK 

[Section 160 — Banking Law] 

General Statement. — The Legislature of 1904 amended the 
banking law by authorizing school savings banks in the public 
schools of the State. This action was necessary in view of an 
opinion of the State Attorney-General, in order to legalize a 



REVIEW QUESTIONS l8l 

growing practice in many schools intended to inculcate prin- 
ciples of thrift and economy at an early period of the child's life. 

Who May Collect Money.— The principal of any public school 
in the State or a superintendent of schools, or any other person 
designated for that purpose by a board of education, may collect 
from pupils once a week or from time to time small amounts of 
savings. 

How Deposited. — Such savings shall be deposited on the day 
collected by the person making such collection in a savings bank 
of the State. Such deposits must be to the credit of the respec- 
tive pupils from whom it was collected. If the amount collected 
at any one time shall be insufficient for the opening of individual 
accounts, it shall be deposited in the name of the principal or 
superintendent in trust .and to be transferred to the credit of the 
respective piipils to whom it belongs when the amount is suffi- 
cient for that purpose. 

Data to be Furnished Bank. — Principals or superintendents 
must furnish banks in which such deposits are made a list of 
the names of such depositors, their ages, signatures, addresses, 
place of birth, parents' na'mes, and any other data required by 
such banks. 

Penalty for Violation of This Law. — For the purposes of this 
law it is lawful to use the terms " School Savings Banks," or 
" System of School Savings Banks " in circulars and otherwise, 
but for a violation thereof a penalty of $ioo is imposed for each 
offense and for each day such offense is continued. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

By whom are textbooks adopted in union free-school districts having a 
population of fifteen hundred or more? In a town? A city? What vote is 
require? How may changes be made in the list of books adopted? By what 
vote? May a town? How? If a union free-school district adopted free 
textbooks before it came under the township law are free textbooks con- 
tinued in such district? Explain. How may they be discontinued? What is 
the penalty for violation of these provisions? How may such fine be 
collected? For what should it be used after it is collected? May a union 
free-school district supply pupils with textbooks? When? How is it done? 

When was Arbor Day created? How? Where did the day originate? 
When? What is considered our State tree? How was it determined? What 
is considered our State flower? How was it determined? Give the history 
of the vote on this question? What was the result of the final vote? What 
has been decided to be the best American poem on nature? How was this 
decided? Who fixes the date for Arbor Day? How? What is the duty of 



l82 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

school authorities in relation to Arbor Day? Who prepares the program of 
exercises? How are such programs distributed? How is the expense of 
carrying out the provisions of the law naet? 

State the provisions of the flag law of 1895 relative to supplying school 
districts with a United States flag. When should the flag be displayed? 
Where? Upon whom does the provisions of the. law fall in union free- 
school districts? In all other districts? Are its provisions left to the 
discretion of school authorities? What is the penalty for failing to comply 
with its provisions? If a district has not a flag and appliances, who should 
purchase one? If a flag and appliances have been destroyed, who should 
replace them? Is a vote of the district or town necessary in either case? 
Why are savings banks established in schools? Who may collect savings 
from pupils? When and by whom must deposits be made? Who must 
supply -data to banks? What is the penalty for violation of law? 



CHAPTER XXI 

COMPULSORY EDUCATION 
[Article 23] 

The Act of 1874. — On May 11, 1874, the State legislature 
passed a Compulsory Education Law, which went into effect 
January i, 1875. The burden of enforcing the provisions of this 
act was placed upon trustees, and penalties for its violation or 
failure to enforce were not provided. Little attention was given to 
the measure, and it was never enforced to any extent in any part 
of the State. After remaining a dead letter upon the statute books 
for twenty years, the act was superseded by chapter 671 of the Laws 
of 1894, which was incorporated in the consolidated school law and 
is now article 2^ of the education law. A law taking effect Septem- 
ber I, 1904, provides for the compulsory education of Indian chil- 
dren on the Indian reservations. This law is modeled after the 
general compulsory education law and is quite similar to .it in all 
respects. For the detailed provisions of this law, see Article 37 of 
the education law. 

Terms Defined. — The terms "school authorities" and "person 
in parental relation to a child " occur so often in this measure 
that a complete knowledge of their meaning is necessary, in order 
to have a clear understanding of the provisions of this law. 

" School Authorities," wherever used in this act, means the trus- 
tees or boards of education, or any other officers known by any 
name whatever whose duties are the same as those of trustees or 
boards of education of a city, a union free-school district, a common- 
school dsitrict, or any other district created by special act of the 
State Legislature. 

" Persons in Parental Relation to a Child." — This term, wherever 
used in this act, means those persons who have the lawful care, 
custody, and control of children. The term includes parents, guar- 
dians, or any other persons standing in such capacity, whether one 
or more. 

183 



l84 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Who Shall Attend Upon Instruction. — i. Every child within 
j^e compulsory school ages, in proper physical and mental condition 
to attend school, residing in a city or school district having a popu- 
lation of five thousand or more and employing a superintendent of 
schools, shall regularly attend upon instruction as follows : 

(a) Each child between seven and fourteen years of age shall 
attend the entire time during which the school attended is in session, 
which period shall not be less than one hundred and eighty days of 
actual school. 

(b) Each child between fourteen and sixteen years of age not 
regularly and lawfully engaged in any useful employment or service, 
and to whom an employment certificate has not been duly issued 
under the provisions of the labor law, shall so attend the entire time 
during which the school attended is in session. 

2. Every such child, residing elsewhere than in a city or school 
district having a population of five thousand or more and employ- 
ing a superintendent of schools, shall attend upon instruction during 
the entire time that the' schools in the district shall be in session, as 
follows : 

(a) Each child between eight and fourteen years of age. 

(b) Each child between fourteen and sixteen years of age not 
regularly and lawfully engaged in any useful employment or service. 

3. The provisions of this section include blind children, except 
those receiving appointments under the provisions of Article 38 of 
the education law. 

Attendance Upon Evening Schools. — Every boy. between 
fourteen and sixteen years of age in a city of the first class or a city 
of the second class who is in possession of an employment certificate 
issued under the provisions of the labor law and who does not hold 
either a certificate of graduation from the public elementary school 
or a certificate of the completion of an elementary school course 
issued by the .Commissioner of Education, or a Regents' pre- 
academic certificate, must attend the public evening schools of such 
city, or other evening schools offering an equivalent course of 
instruction. Such attendance must be for a period of not less than 
six hours each week for at least sixteen weeks each year. Attend- 
ance upon a trade school for eight hours per week for sixteen weeks 
in a year will also be accepted. 

Where Children May Attend Upon Instruction. — This law 
does not prescribe that children shall attend public schools. It 



COMPULSORY EDUCATION 1 85 

provides that they shall attend upon instruction. Such attendance 
upon instruction may, therefore, be in a public school, a private 
school, or at home. 

Character of Instruction. — When children attend elsewhere 
than at a public school, the instruction given must be substantially 
the same as that given to children of like age in the public schools 
in the city or district in which such children reside. The number 
of hours' attendance shall be the same as that required in the public 
school of the district in which such children reside. No greater 
allowance for holidays, vacations, etc., shall be made upon such 
attendance than is allowed in the public schools of the district in 
which such children reside. 

Duty of Parents, Guardians, etc. — The law makes it the duty 
of every parent, guardian, or other person standing in parental 
relation to a child or children between the ages of seven and sixteen 
years, to require such child or children to attend upon instruction 
as required by law, provided such child or children are in proper 
physical and mental condition to attend school. 

Parent or Guardians Guilty of Misdemeanor, etc. — Any parent, 
guardian, or other person in parental relation to a child or children, 
who fails to require them to attend upon instruction as required by 
law is guilty of a misdemeanor. For the first offense, a fine not 
exceeding $5 or imprisonment for five days may be imposed. Each 
subsequent offense is punishable by a fine not to exceed $50, or by 
imprisonment not to exceed thirty days, or by both such fine and 
imprisonment. No provision having been made by this act as to 
what should be done with a fine in this case, the same should be 
disposed of as are other fines imposed and collected by courts as 
provided in sections 726 and 727 of the code of criminal procedure. 

School Record Certificate. — A school record certificate must 
be issued on demand to a child who upon due investigation and 
examination may be found to be entitled thereto or to the board, 
department or commissioner of health. Such certificate must cer- 
tify that the child has regularly, attended the public school or schools 
equivalent thereto, or parochial schools, for not less than 130 days 
during the twelve months next preceding his fourteenth birthday 
or during the twelve months next preceding his application therefor 
and has completed six years of the elementary course of study. 
The certificate must also give the date of birth and residence of the 



l86 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

child as shown on the records of the school and the name of the 
child's parent, guardian or custodian. 

No school record certificate shall be issued to any child under 
fifteen years of age, unless such child at the/ age of fourteen is a 
graduate of a public elementary school or parochial school or a 
school of equal rank maintaining an equivalent course of study and 
the instruction therein is given in English ; or holds a pre-academic 
certificate issued by the Regents, or a certificate of the completion 
of an elementary course issued by the State Education Department. 

The authority to issue such certificate is as follows : 

1. In a city of the first class by a principal or the chief executive 
officer of a school. 

2. In all other cities and in school districts having a population 
of 5,000 or more and employing a superintendent! of schools, by the 
superintendent of schools only. 

3. In all other school districts by the principal teacher of the 
school. 

Evening School Certificate. — A boy who ha^ been in attend- 
ance upon an evening school six hours each week for such number 
of weeks as will when taken in connection with the number of weeks 
such evening school will be in session during the remainder of the 
current or calendar year, make up a total attendance of six hours 
each week for sixteen weeks for such boy, is entitled to an evening 
school certificate. Attendance upon a trade school for eight hours 
per week for a period of sixteen weeks shall also entitle a boy to 
such certificate. Such certificate must be issued by the school au- 
thorities or officers designated by them at least once in each month 
during the months such school is in session and also at the close of 
the term. The certificate must show the actual attendance of such 
boy upon the evening or trade school. 

Employment Certifiate and Evening School Certificate Must 
be Displayed. — The employer of every child between the ages 
of fourteen and sixteen in a city or district must keep and must 
display where such child is employed the employment certificate 
issued such child by the health authorities and the evening part- 
time or continuation school certificate issued by the school 
authorities. 

Unlawful Employment of Children. — It is unlawful for any 
person, firm, or corporation to employ any child under the age 



COMPULSORY EDUCATION ^187 

of fourteen years for any purpose any part of the term during 
which the public schools of the district in which such child 
resides are in session. 

- It is also unlawful to employ elsewhere than in a city of the 
first class or of the second class any child between fourteen and 
sixteen years of age in a factory, or mercantile establishment, 
business or telegraph office, restaurant, hotel, apartment house, 
i or in the distribution or transmission of merchandise or mes- 
sages, who has not an employment certificate issued under the 
labor law, or to employ such child in any other capacity who does 
not at the time of employment present a school record certificate. 

I-t is also unlawful to employ any child between fourteen and 
sixteen years of age in a city of the first or second class who 
does not present an employment certificate duly issued under the 
labor law. 

Penalty for Unlawful Employment. — Any person, firm, or 
corporation or any officer or employee acting therefor who em- 
ploys any child in violation of the co'mpulsory education law shall 
be guilty of a misdemeanor and the punishment for the first 
offense shall be a fine of not less than twenty dollars and not 
more than fifty dollars ; for the second offense and each offense 
thereafter a fine of not less than fifty dollars and not more than 
two hundred dollars. This fine shall be paid to the treasurer'of 
the city or village or to the supervisor of the town in which the 
offense occurs, and must be added to the public school moneys 
of the city, village, or district in which the offense occurs. 

Record of Attendance by Teachers. — The teacher of every 
public school is required to keep an accurate record of attend- 
ance of all children between the ages of seven and sixteen years. 
This record must show the attendance each day by the year, 
moath, day of the month, and day of the week, and the number 
of hours thereof each day. Teachers of private schools are also 
required to keep such record of attendance. " A record of attend- 
ance upon instruction must also be kept of children who do not 
attend public or private schools, but who are instructed at home. 

These records must at all times be open to the inspection of 
an attendance officer t)r other person appointed by the school 
authorities of the city, district or Commissioner of Education. 
Teachers must also answer all reasonable inquiries relative to 



188* NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

such records. A willful refusal or neglect to answer any such 
inquiry is a misdemeanor. 

It is important that all records of attendance shall be kept 
with great care, as in cases taken to the courts the school register 
will be the principal documentary evidence as to the attendance 
of pupils. 

Attendance Officers. — In each city, and in each union free- 
school district not under the township law, the 'board of educa- 
tion of such city or district shall appoint as many attendance 
officers as such board shall deem necessary for the proper en- 
forcement of the attendance law. Such board may also at any 
time remove such attendance officers. Boards must also fix the 
compensation of these officers, define their duties, and establish 
rules and regulations for their guidance. The supervision and 
enforcement of this act is placed in the hands of the superin- 
tendent of schools in such cities and districts. 

The town board of education of each town must also appoint 
as many attendance officers for its town as, in the judgment 
of such board, shall be necessary for the proper enforcement of 
this act. The jurisdiction of such attendance officers extends 
over all districts under the control of the town board of educa- 
tion. Such board shall fix the compensation of such officers. 
An attendance officer may be removed by a district superin- 
tendent. 

If non-resident pupils are tardy or absent, school authorities 
should report the same to the school and attendance officers of 
the district in which such non-resident pupils reside. All pupils 
are subject to the authority of the school officers and attendance 
officers of the district in which they reside. 

Arrest of Truants. — Attendance officers have authority to 
arrest at any time, without warrant, any child between seven 
and sixteen years of age who is then a truant from instruction 
upon which such child is lawfully required to attend. 

In case any child is thus arrested, the attendance officer must 
forthwith take such child to his teacher; or in case the child is 
an habitual truant, the officer must • take him before a police 
magistrate, who may commit him to a truant school or to some 
similar institution. After each arrest it is the duty of the at- 
tendance officer to report the disposition made by him of the 



COMPULSORY EDUCATION I89 

child, to the school authorities of the district where such child 
was required to attend school, 

A truant officer in the performance of his duty has the au- 
thority to enter during business hours a factory, mercantile or 
other establishment and examine the employment certificates and 
registry of children employed therein. 

Truant Schools. — The school authorities of any city, town or 
union free-school district may establis'h schools or set apart 
separate rooms for ^children who are habitual truants, or who are 
insubordinate while in attendance, or who are irregular in their 
attendance ; and they may provide for the confinement, mainte- 
nance, and instruction of such children in such schools. If the 
school authorities of any city, town or union free-school district 
do not establish a truant school, they may make a contract with 
any other city, town or school district having a truant school, for 
the confinement, maintenance, and instruction of their truant 
children. 

Commitment. — Wh^n the persons in parental relation to a child 
give their written consent, the school authorities or the superin- 
tendent of schools may commit such child to a truant school ; or 
in a private school, an orphans' home, or similar institution con- 
trolled by persons of the same religious faith as the persons in 
parental relation to the child, for a period not to exceed two 
years. No child can be committed after he is sixteen years of 
age. 

If the persons in parental relation to the child refuse their 
consent, the child may be proceeded against as a disorderly per- 
son, and, upon conviction, must be sentenced to be confined and 
maintained for the remainder of the current school year either 
in a truant school or in a private school, an orphans' home, or 
similar institution. 

An habitual truant or a child who, being subject to the .com- 
pulsory education law, has been lawfully suspended or expelled 
from school, and is not receiving equivalent instruction else- 
where, is declared to be an ungovernable dhild. Any such child 
may be apprehended by a truant officer of the school district or 
city where the child resides, or by any peace officer, and brought 
before a police magistrate having jurisdiction. Notice shall 
thereupon be given to the child's parent, guardian, or other per- 
son standing in parental relation to the child, ^and upon the sub- 



190 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

mission of satisfactory proof ^hat the child is an habitual truant 
or that, being subject to the compulsory education law, he has 
been lawfully suspended or expelled from school and is not 
receiving instruction elsewhere, the magistrate may commit such 
child to a truant school maintained by such district or city, or, if 
no such truant school is maintained, to a private school, orphans' 
home, or other similar institution if there be one, controlled by 
persons of the same religious faith as the persons in parental 
relation to such, child, which is willing and able to receive, confine 
and maintain such child for a reasonable co'mpensation. 

No person convicted of crimes or misdemeanors other than 
truancy may be committed to any truant school. 

No truant may be committed to a penal institution. 

Expenses of Commitment — Where Chargeable. — The city 
or district employing a superintendent of schools must pay the 
expense attending the commitment and cost of maintenance of 
any child committed by them to a truant school. 

In all other cases such expense and costs are a county charge. 

Industrial Training. — In every truant school established in- 
dustrial training must be furnished. 

Excuses for Absence and Tardiness Required. — The State 
Commissioner of Education has ruled that the person in parental 
relation to every child subject to the provisions of the compulsory 
attendance law may be required to furnish a satisfactory explana- 
tion for absence or tardiness, and has held that sickness of the 
child, sickness in the family requiring the services of the child 
for a day or two until Other help m^ay be obtained, severe storm 
or impassable roads, contagious disease in the family or the 
community where child resides, days set apart for religious 
observance, or death in the family, shall be deemed the only 
ordinary excuse for such absence or tardiness. 

Assistants. — The Commissioner of Education has authority to 
appoint as m'any inspectors for the enforcement of thife law as 
he shall deem necessary provided the Legislature has made pro- 
vision for the payment of their salaries. The attendance division 
has general charge of this work. 

Withholding State Funds. — The Commissioner of Education 
has authority to withhold one-half of the public school money 
from any city, town or district which willfully omits or refuses 
to enforce the provisions of this act. Before this power is exer- 



COMPULSORY EDUCATION I9I 

cised, due notice must be given to such city or school district 
authorities. When such city or district complies, within a period 
of twelve months after such money was withheld with any pro- 
vision of law which may not have been enforced, and for non- 
compliance with which any money has been withheld, the Com- 
missioner of Education shall pay over to the authorities of such 
city, town or district the amount so withheld. 



EMPLOYMENT OF CHILDREN IN STREETS 
[Article 3 of the Labor Law] 

Authority to Enforce. — The police ofificers, and the attendance 
officers appointed by the board of education, in cities of the first 
and second class are peace officers under this law and are charged 
with the duty of the enforcement of such law. 

Prohibited Employment of Children in Street Trades. — No 
boy under twelve and no girl under sixteen years of age has a 
legal right in any city of the first, second or third class to sell or 
expose or offer for sale newspapers, magazines or periodicals in 
any street or public place. No boy under fourteen years of age 
has a legal right to sell or expose or offer for sale such articles 
unless he has received a permit and badge authorizing him to 
engage in such employment. No boy having such 'badge can 
be employed in such business before six o'clpck in the morning 
or after eig!ht o'clock in the evening. 

Issuance of Permit an3 Badge. — Such permit and badge are 
issued by the superintendent of schools of the city or school dis- 
trict in which such child resides, or by such other officer of the 
board of education as suoh board miay designate. The applica- 
tion for such permit and badge must be made by the parent,** 
guardian or other person having the custody of the child desir- 
ing it. If the child has no such relative the application must be 
made by the child's next friend, being an adult. Before an 
authorized officer issues such badge he must have received, ex- 
amined and placed on file in his office satisfactory proof that such 
boy is of the age of twelve years or upwards. He must also have 
a written statement of the principal or chief executive officer 
of the school which such boy is attending, that he is an attendant 
at such school, that he is of the normal development of a boy 



192 . NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

of his age and physically fit for such employment and that he 
approves of the granting of such permit and 'badge to such boy. 

List of Boys Receiving Permit and Badge. — Principals and 
chief executive officers of schools must keep a complete list of 
all children in their schools to whom a permit and 'badge have 
been issued. 

Contents of Permit and Badge. — The permit must show the 
date and place of birth of the child, the name and address of 
its parent, guardian, custodian or next friend as the case may 
be. It must describe the color of hair and eyes, the height and 
weight, and any distinguishing facial mark of the boy receiving 
it. It must also state that the preliminary papers requisite to its 
issuance have been duly examined and filed and that the boy 
named in such permit has appeared before the officer who issued 
it. The badge shall bear on its face a numiber corresponding to 
the number of the permit and the name of the child. The boy 
must write his name on the reverse side of t!he permit and badge 
in the presence of the officer issuing it. 

Regulations Concerning Badge and Permit. — The badge must 
be worn conspicuously at all times by the boy while so working 
and he shall exhibit the same upon demand at any time to any 
police or attendance officer. No badge or permit may be trans- 
ferred. All permits and badges expire annually upon the first 
day of January. The color of the badge must be changed each 
year. No permit or badge is valid except during the period in 
which the proof and written statement requisite to its issuance 
shall remain on file nor are they authority beyond the period 
fixed therein for their duration. 

Conditions Under which the Compulsory Attendance Law May 
be Suspended. — Governor Whitman approved on May 29, 191 7, 
the bill known as the Senator E. R. Brown bill, authorizing the 
suspension of^ the provisions of the compulsory attendance law 
under certain conditions, for the purpose of permitting children, 
coming within the compulsory school ages, to he employed in the 
cultivation, production and care of food products upon farms and 
gardens within the State. On the approval of the Governor, this 
bill became Chapter 689 of the Laws of 1917. Sections i and 2 of 
this act are the sections which treat of the suspension of the com- 
pulsory attendance law, and the essential provisions of such law are 
as follows: 



COMPULSORY EDUCATION I93 

1. The compulsory attendance law may be suspended between the 
first day of April and the first day of November but at no other 
time during the year. It may be suspended during this period in 
the discretion only of the Commissioner of Education. School 
authorities of ,the various cities and districts of the State may not 
suspend the operation of the law. Parents have not the authority 
to determine that they may take their children from school for the 
purposes of the act authori-zing a suspension of the compulsory 
attendance law. ' 

2. The Commissioner of Education may exercise his discretion 
in suspending the compulsory attendance law for the sole purpose 
of permitting children, coming within the compulsory school ages, 
to labor in the cidtivation, production and care of food products 
upon farms and gardens within the State. Children within the com- 
pulsory school ages may not, while school is in session, be excused 
therefrom for the purpose of performing any other kind of labor. 
No provision of the labor law is repealed, suspended or modified 
under the provisions of this act and the provisions of the labor law 
prohibiting the employment of children in canneries or cannery 
sheds or in any factory or mercantile establishment are still in force. 
Children within the compulsory school ages may not be employed 
contrary to the provisions of the labor law. The Commissioner of 
Education has not the discretionary power, under this statute, to 
authorize the employment of children for the above purposes which 
are prohibited under the labor law. 

3. It must be specifically understood that there is no general 
suspension of the compulsory education law and all children must 
be in attendance upon school as required under such law unless they 
are specifically excused in conformity with the regulations herein 
prescribed. 

4. This statute makes it the duty of the Commissioner of Educa- 
tion to prescribe rules and regulations under which the provisions 
of the compulsory attendance law may be suspended for the pur- 
pose of permitting children to be employed in the work authorized 
by this statute. The law further provides that the suspension of 
the compulsory attendance law sh^ll be subject to " such conditions, 
restrictions and limitations as may be imposed by the Commissioner 
of Education." 

5. This statute also specifically provides that in case the Com- 
missioner of Education does authorize the suspension of the com- 

13 



194 



NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 



pulsory attendance law, provision shall be made for the welfare 
and protection of the children thus employed and that, during the 
period of such suspension and while engaged vh such work, these 
children shall be under the supervision and direction of the school 
authorities of the city or district in which such children reside. 
The school authorities of each city and school district will be held 
to a strict accountability in the proper discharge of this obligation. 
School trustees, boards of education and district superintendents 
having jurisdiction" of schools in the territory where children are 
employed under the provisions of this law will be directed by the 
Commissioner of Education to cooperate with the school authorities 
of the cities and districts in which such children's homes are located 
in affording such children the protection and supervision contem- 
plated under the provisions of this statute. 

For the proper guidance of parents and school officers agd for 
tiie proper and intended administration of this statute, the following 
regulations are hereby prescribed : 

I. Children within compulsory school ages who may be employed 
when school is in session: 
a Boys only, fifteen years of age and above, residing in cities. 
b Boys only, fourteen years of age and above, residing else- 
where than in a city. , 
c Girls fourteen years of age and above may work at home 
only in the district in which such girls reside, or at a 
place sufficiently near such girls' homes as to afford 
supervision by their parents. 

«. issuance of farm garden permit: 

a No child shall be employed or permitted to work on farms 
and gardens until such child shall obtain a farm-garden 
permit granted as hereinafter provided. 

b Farm-garden permits shall be granted in cities, by the 
board of education or a person designated by said board ; 
in a union free-school district by the board of education 
of said district, and in towns after August ist by the 
town board of education. Boards of edlication under 
the township law assume their duties August ist. Until- 
that date farm-garden permits in rural schools may be 
issued by school trustees. 



COMPULSORY EDUCATION I95 

c Before a farm-garden permit may be issued, the issuing 
officer shajl require due proof that the child applying for 
such permit is of the required age, and the age of appli- 
cant as recorded in the school register kept on file at the 
school where such applicant last attended may be re- 
garded as due proof of age. 

d The farm-garden permit shall give the following informa- 
tion : 

1. The name of the employer. 

2. Probable period for which permit is issued. 

3. The name, age and place of residence of the child. 

e No child shall receive a farm-garden permit who does not 
present to the issuing officer the written consent of his 
parent or guardian and who is not found to be physically 
competent to perform the labor proposed. 

/ Boards of education in cities and villages having a popu- 
lation of five thousand or more shall employ duly licensed 
physicians to determine the physical competency of chil- 
dren applying for farm-garden permits. 

g The following form of farm-garden permit shall be used : 

FARM-GARDEN PERMIT 

Issued pursuant to Chapter 689 of the Laws of 1917. 
The Board of Education of upon 

(city, town or village) 

application duly made pursuant to law, grants this permit to 
for the employment of 

(name of employer) . (name of child) 

residing at * for the cultivation, production and 

(child's address) 

care of food products upon the farm or garden located at 
for the period of 

(probable date of employment) 

and it is hereby certified that the child named above, personally 
appeared before the undersigned official and was by him examined 
and found qualified for farm-garden employment. 



196 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

DESCRIPTION OF CHILD 

Place of birth Date of birth : 

The Board of Education. 



By ..., 

(signature of child) (signature of issuing official) 



Address of 

Board of Education. 



Date 



The employment of the above- 
named child as described herein 
has my consent and approval. 

(signature of parent) 

N. B. This permit must be filed with the employer, at the place 
of employment during the period of such employment. It must be 
returned by mail to the issuing officer upon the termination of the 
child's employment. 



TERMINATION NOTICE 

The undersigned gives notice that 



(name of child) 

has ceased working on his farm or garden, and he returns herewith 
the permit of said child. 



(signature of employer) 
(Date) 

3. Reports to State Education Department: 

a The officer issuing farm-garden permits as herein provided 
shall make a semi-monthly report to the State Education 
Department, giving the names and residences of the 
employers and place of employment of each child to 
whom a farm-garden permit shall have been issued. 

b The board of education shall make a semi-monthly report 
to the State Education Department, showing in detail the 
supervision which has been exercised oyer children to 
whom farm-garden permits shall have been issued. 

4. The period of employment of children as herein provided shall 

be between May i and November i, 1917. 

5. Employers of children on farms and gardens, under this act, 

shall provide suitable and sanitary living quarters for such 
children, and sufficient, ample food, of proper quality and 
variety for such children, while thus employed. 



REVIEW QUESTIONS I97 

6. Children employed on farms and gardens shall, while so em- 

ployed, be under supervision of proper persons appointed 
by school authorities having jurisdiction in the city or dis- 
trict in which such children reside, and such supervision 
shall include: 

a Weekly reports from child to permit-issuing officer. 

b Local inspection at least semi-monthly. 

c State inspection at least monthly. 

7. Moneys necessary for the purpose of providing for the super- 

vision, inspection, protection and welfare of children em- 
ployed shall be furnished by school authorities, as provided 
in the act. 

8. Children of compulsory school age, as herein provided, may 

be exempt from school attendance while engaged in work 
on farms and gardens during the period between May i 
and November i, 19 17, or such portion thereof as the Com- 
missioner of Education may hereafter prescribe. 

9. Revocation of farm-garden permit: 

Any farm-garden permit may be revoked by the issuing officer 
for violation of its conditions. Such permit may also be 
revoked for like purpose by the Commissioner of Education, 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

When was the present compulsory attendance law enacted? What com- 
pulsory act precede^ this? Why was it not enforced? Define "school 
authorities," "persons in parental relation to a child." 

Into how many classes in respect to age may children be arranged who 
are required to attend upon instruction? Define each class. Why is the 
term "attend upon instruction" used instead of "attend school?" What 
period of instruction is required of each class? What must be the character 
of the attendance? When must children between 14 and 16 years of age 
attend upon instruction? Must the attendance be at a public school? Where 
may it be ? Where children are instructed elsewhere than at a public school, 
what must be the character of such instruction? The daily period of instruc- 
tion? What about allowance of holidays, etc.? 

What is the duty of persons in parental authority? When is a parent or 
guardian guilty of a misdemeanor? What is .the penalty for the first offense? 
Each subsequent offense? When fines are collected to whom should they 
be paid? What must a school record certificate show? By whom is it issued ? 
When is a boy entitled to an evening school certificate? By whom are such 
certificates issued? How must such certificate be displaced? When is it 
unlawful to employ children under 14 years of age? By whom must a 
certificate of attendance be signed? What is the penalty for unlawful 
employment of children? What disposition is made of a fine thus collected? 



198 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

What record of attendance must teachers keep? What must such record 
show? Are the teachers of private schools and those employed in homes of 
children required to keep such record? To whom should this record be open 
to inspection? What is the penalty imposed upon teachers who refuse to 
answer reasonable inquiries, relative to such records ? 

For what school districts do the school authorities appoint attendance 
officers? How many may they appoint? Who determines the compensation 
of such officers? By whom may they be removed? Who is charged witl\ 
the duty of enforcing the law in such districts or cities? 

For what territory may town boards of education appoint attendance 
officers? How many? Who fixes their compensation? What is their juris- 
diction? Who may remove these officers from office? What authority have 
attendance officers to arrest truants? When a truant is arrested what must 
the officer do with such truant? After such arrest what report must the 
attendance officer make? To whom? How may truant schools be estab- 
lished? What three classes of pupils may be confined in such schools? 
What power have school authorities to contract for the confinement and 
maintenance of truants? With the written consent of the parents or 
guardian, where may a truant be committed? When the person in parental 
authority refuses to consent, what action should be taken? What persons 
cannot be committed to truant schools? When is the expense of such com- 
mitment a city or village charge? When a county charge? What instruction 
must be given in all truant schools? 

What is the ruling of the Commissioner of Education as to what con- 
stitutes a satisfactory excuse for absence or tardiness? What help may the 
Commissioner of Education employ to assist in enforcing this law? When 
may the Commissioner of Education withhold public money from a district? 
What portion may be withheld? What action must be taken first? When 
must the Commissioner of Education pay over moneys thus withheld? 

Who are charged with the duty of enforcing the law relative to employ- 
ment of newsboys? What are the prohibitive ages of employment? On 
what conditions may a boy between 10 and 14 years of age be employed? 
Between what hours can he not be employed? By whom are permits and 
badges issued? By whom must the application be made? What written 
statement must be first obtained? Who is required to keep a list of boys 
receiving them? State fully contents which permit must contain. Badge? 
For what time are permit and badge valid? On what date do they expire? 
State fully the other regulations concerning them. 

For what purpose only may the compulsory education law be suspended? 
When may it be suspended? What is the general purpose? Who may 
suspend it? Who may not suspend it? Are any of the provisions of the 
labor law repealed? State the three classes of children, giving ages and 
sex, who may be excused from the provisions of j:he compulsory attendance 
law? What is a garden permit? By whom issued? What must it contain? 
How is it issued? What reports are required? What supervision of those 
employed is required When may such permit be revoked? 



CHAPTER XXII 

SCHOOL CENSUS 

[Article 24] 

Bureau in New York City. — The Board of Education of New 
York City is required to estaiblisih a Bureau of Compulsory Edu- 
cation, School Census, and Child Welfiare. Such board is also 
authorized to prescribe by-laws, rules, and regulations for the 
proper operation and administration of such bureau. The board 
of superintendents is required to nominate a director and as- 
sistant director of such bureau to the board of education, and 
such board has the power to appoint these officers. Attendance 
officers, enumerators, clerks and other employees necessiary for 
the administration of the work of such bureau are chosen in the 
same manner. The term of office of the director and assistant 
director is six years each. No person is eligible to either of these 
positions who is not a graduate of an approved college or uni- 
versity, and who has also had five years' experience in teaching 
or in supervisory work since graduation. A person who holds a 
principal's license for any ^bureau of the city of New York ob- 
tained upon examination, and who has also had ten years' experi- 
ence in teaching or supervisory work is also eligible. 

Under the direction of this bureau the attendance officers and 
enumerators appointed by the board are required to take a census 
of all the children between the ages of four and eighteen years of 
age residing within the 'boundaries of the city. This bureau is 
required to amend such census from day to day so that at all 
times there shall be kept on file in the bureau a co'mplete, up-tor 
date census of the names and residences of such children. 

The general direction and supervision of the school census 
bureau is under the city superintendent of schools, and the 
bureau is so organized that the director of the 'bureau is charged 
with the administration of the compulsory attendance law and 
the assistant director' of the bureau with the administration of 
the census law. 

199 



2CXD NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Census Board in Buffalo and Rochester. — The mayor, the 
superintendent of schools and the police commissioner, or the 
officer performing the duties similar to those of a police com- 
missioner, constitute a permanent census board in the cities of 
Buffalo and Rochester. 

Officers of Such Board. — The mayor is the chairman of such 
board. The board also has the power to appoint a secretary 
and such clerks and other employees as may be necessary and 
to fix their Salaries. 

Census Required. — The census board is ;-equired to prescribe 
regulations to make effective the census law and under such 
regulations the police commissioners were required to cause a 
census to be taken in their respective cities during the month 
of October, 1909. The census boards are required to obtain 
through the police force the residences and employments of all 
persons between the ages of four and eighteen years and to 
report thereon from time to time to the school authorities of 
their respective cities. After the census of October, 1909, -was 
taken it became the duty of the census board to cause the same 
to be amended from day to day. It is the duty of the police 
to report daily, precinct by precinct, changes of residence which 
occur among the children between the ages of four and eighteen. 
The police should likewise report daily the names and addresses 
of all children between such ages who move into the city. The 
census board should therefore always have on file in its office 
a complete list of the names, addresses, occupations and persons 
in parental relation, of all persons between the ages of four and 
eighteen. While the law makes it the duty of the police to 
make daily reports and to take the permanent census required 
under the law, the census board may employ such enumerators 
or other help as may be necessary to carry into effect the pro- 
visions of the law. It should also be understood that while 
parents are required to report certain data to the police a failure 
on the part of parents to make such report does not relieve the 
police or the census board from obtaining this data. The burden 
of the enforcement of this law is placed primarily upon the 
census board, and also upon the police, and this board and the 
police must obtain all information necessary to keep the census 
properly revised from day to day. 

Parents Required to Report. — A person in parental relation 



SCHOOL CENSUS 20I 

to a child is required to report at the police station house of the 
precinct in which he resides the following: 

1. The name of each child, its residence, the name of the 
person in parental relation thereto and the name and location of 
the school such child is to attend at least two weeks before such 
child becomes of the compulsory school age. 

2. The facts relating to the removal of a child of compulsory 
school age from one school to another, for any cause whatever, 
and of a child going to work in accordance with the provisions 
of the labor law. 

3. The change of residence of a child from one police pre- 
cinct to another and such other facts relating to such child as 
required by the two previous suibdivisions. 

4. The residence of a child between four and eighteen who 
moves into such city and such other facts relating thereto as the 
census board may require. 

Census in Cities of the Second and Third Class. — Under an 
amendment to the census law by the Legislature of 1917 the 
school authorities of cities of the second and third class are no 
longer required to take a census of the children of the city every 
four years. This amendment to the education law provides that 
the board of education of each city of the second class and of 
the third class shall constitute a permanent census board. This 
board is required to take a census of all children between the 
ages of four and eighteen years of age in its city. This census 
must be amended from day to day so that there shall always be 
on file in the office of said board of education a complete, up-to- 
date census, including all the census information required of 
cities of the first class and such additional information as the 
board of education may require under its regulations. The 
board of education of these cities becomes a permanent census 
board and is required to establish a census bureau. The board 
must appoint such directors, clerks, enumerators, attendance offi- 
cers, etc., as may be necessary to keep an up-to-date census as 
required under the law. 

School Census in School Districts. — The board of education 
of every union free-school district and of every town is required 
to take a census annually on the thirtieth day of August, of all 
children between the ages of five and eighteen years. The in- 
formation required is the same as that required of cities. 



202 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Withhold Information or Giving False Information. — ^A parent, 
guardian, or other person having the control of a child between 
the ages of four and eighteen years who withholds or refuses 
to give information in relation to such child as required under 
the census law, or a parent, guardian or other person in custody 
of a child who gives false information in relation thereto is liable 
to a fine not to exceed twenty dollars and imprisonment not to 
exceed thirty days. 

Expenses of Census. — The expense involved in taking a census 
required under this law is a charge upon the city, town or school 
district for which it is taken. It is the duty of municipal author- 
ities to appropriatie or set apart sufficient funds for this work. 
The census board in a city should file annually with the proper 
municipal authorities an estimate of the amount required for 
.such work. A board of education should include in its annual 
budget a sufficient amount for this purpose, 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

How is the census board for New York City organized? Who are 
eligible to the office of director or assistant director? What are their terms 
of office? What powers has the bureau? State fully the powers and duties 
of the bureau for New York City. Who constitute a census board for 
Buffalo and for Rochester? Who is chairman of the census board? What 
other officers does such board have? How are such officers chosen? Who 
fixes their salaries? What regulations may such board prescribe? In what 
year was a complete census to be taken? What officer was charged with 
this duty? What information is the census board required to obtain? 
Through what officers is this information obtained? To whom must the 
census board make reports? Explain how the census of 1909 is to be 
amended. What is the duty of the police in this respect? What should the 
census office alwaj's contain? Must the census board rely solely upon the 
police to do the work required? If parents fail to perform their duty, what 
is the duty of the census board? 

To whom must parents make reports? State the four points upon which 
they must report. How is the board constituted? What are the powers and 
duties of such board? 

Who are required to take a census in union free-school districts? In 
towns? How often? On what date? What information must be obtained? 
What penalty is prescribed for refusing to give or withholding any informa- 
tion required, or for giving false information? Who pays the expenses 
incurred in taking this census? How are the funds obtained in a city? In 
a school district? 



CHAPTER XXIII 

MEDICAL INSPECTION, VACCINATION, PHYSICAL TRAINING, MILfTARY 

INSTRUCTION 

[Article 28] 
MEDICAL INSPECTION 

General. — The Legislature of 1913 enacted a medical inspec- 
tion law, which applies to each school district and city of the 
State, except cities of the first class. 

Under the terms of this act, the power to superintend and 
direct the medical inspection in public schools is the school 
authorities. The health authorities no longer possess juris- 
diction in relation to this subject. The law is mandatory, and 
makes it the duty of boards of education and school boards to 
appoint necessary medical inspectors and nurses, and to see that 
this law is properly enforced. 

Medical Inspectors. — Persons appointed medical inspectors 
under this law must be physicians, licensed to practice in the 
State, and who have had at least two years such practice. A 
medical inspector must be a resident of the city for which he is 
appointed. A medical inspector for a union free-school district 
or town outside a city is not required to be a resident of such 
district. 

The nurses authorized under this law must be registered 
nurses, and licensed to practice as such. 

The law requires the board of education of^each city to appoint 
at least one medical inspector, and such additional inspectors as 
may be necessary for the proper enforcement of the law. Such 
board may also appoint as many school nurses as may be 
necessiary. 

In a union free-school district the board is required to appoint 
one medical inspector. If such district has a population which 
exceeds 5,000, the board may appoint as many additional in- 
spectors as are necessary to perform the work. The board may 

203 



204 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

also appoint such numiber of nurses as may be necessary to do 
proper follow-up work and otherwise supplement the work of the 
medical inspector. 

The township law of 1917 modifies the requirements of the med- 
ical inspection law by conferring upon a town board of education 
the authority to appoint such medical inspectors and nurses as may 
be necessary to properly enforce the provisions of the medical 
inspection statutes. Medical inspectors must be practicing physi- 
cians of at least two years' experience, and the nurses appointed 
under this law must be registered nurses. There is no provision of 
law requiring a specific number of medical inspectors in a town. 
It is held by the Commissioner of Education that registered nurses 
may make physical examinations, do the follow-up work and per^ 
form other functions required under the medical inspection act. 
The greater portion of the work required under the medical inspec- 
tion law, may be properly and efficiently performed by a nurse. The 
complicated cases should be referred to a physician for consideration 
as a medical inspector. 

Health Certificate. — When school opens, or within thirty days 
thereafter, each pupil may present a health certificate issued by a 
physician of the parents' selection. If such certificate is not pre^ 
sented within this time, the principal teacher should notify the 
parents of those pupils who have failed to present such certificate 
that if a certificate is not furnished within an additional thirty days, 
at the expiration of such period an examination of the pupils will 
be made by the medical inspector. 

If a pupil fails to present the health certificate within this time, 
the medical inspector should then make an examination of the pupil. 

This health certificate must be issued by a physician licensed to 
practice medicine in this State, and on an examination made by such 
physician not more than thirty days prior to the date when the 
certificate is presented at school. 

These certificates should be retained in the. school building until 
the close of school at the end of the school year, and should then 
be filed with the district clerk. In cities such certificates should be 
filed with the Superintendent of Schools. 

The expense of the examination of a pupil when made by the 
family physician must be paid by the parent, and may not be made 
a charge against the city or district. When the examination is made 
by the medical inspector, no charge may be made against the parent. 



MEDICAL INSPECTION, VACCINATION, ETC. 20$ 

The law provides that a parent may v^^aive his rights to furnish a 
health certificate, and in such case the medical inspector having 
jurisdiction may make the required examination without waiting 
the sixty days required under the law. 

Eye and Ear Tests.— -The school authorities are required to 
make a test of the eyes and ears of each pupil at least once a year. 
These tests should be made under the general guidance of the 
medical inspectors and nurses, but teachers may be called upon to 
assist. 

Pupils who present health certificates are not exempt from these 
tests by the school authorities. 

When an examination of the eyes or ears of a pupil discloses a 
defect in these organs, such additional tests should be made from 
time to time as the pupil's condition may require. 

Medical Treatment for Children. — When an examination of 
a child by a medical inspector reveals a defect or disability which 
is an impediment to the normal or physical development of such 
child, the principal, or teacher, of the school should notify the 
parent of this defect or disability. It is then the duty of the 
parent to provide the relief or treatment which the child should 
receive. 

If the parent fails to provide such relief or treatment, or if he 
is not financially able to supply such relief or treatment, it then 
becomes the duty of the school authorities to provide the relief or 
treatment at the expense of the city or district. School authorities 
should insist in every case that a parent, if possible, shall provide 
such treatment as his child requires. The school authorities should 
know in every case where assistance is given that the parent is 
positively unable to meet the expense himself. 

A medical inspector should not incur any expense in providing 
medical relief or treatment for a child, until an appropriation for 
such expense has been duly authorized by the school authorities of 
the city or district. These authorities may provide for meeting this 
expense from the contingent fund, or any general funds which have 
not been authorized for a specific purpose. 

A medical inspector cannot furnish pupils relief or treatment, 
and receive compensation therefor, and a medical inspector should 
not refer children needing relief or treatment to any particular 
physician, but parents should always be advised to take their chil- 
dren to their family physicians for such treatment as may be needed. 



2o6 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Exclusion of Pupils from School. — Whenever a pupil in a 
pubHc school shows symptoms of smallpox, scarlet fever, measles, 
chickenpox, tuberculosis, diphtheria, influenza, tonsilitis, whooping- 
cough, mumps, scabies, trachoma, or other communicable disease 
he must be excluded ffom the school. 

The school authorities should immediately take such pupil to 
his home in a safe and proper conveyance, and should immediately 
notify the health officer. 

A pupil who has been absent from school because of illness, or 
for unknown cause, may not be admitted to school again until he 
presents a certificate from the health officer, family physician, or 
the medical inspector. 

Teachers, Janitors and School Buildings. — The law requires 
the medical inspectors to examine all teachers and janitors employed 
in the public schools. 

It further provides that such inspectors shall examine all school 
buildings. 

Teachers and janitors may present a health certificate, in which 
case they are exempt from the examination by the medical inspector. 

Penalty. — The law makes it the duty of the Commissioner of 
Education to enforce the provisions of the medical inspection law, 
and he may, in his discretion, withhold public money from a district, 
town or city which wilfully refuses or neglects to enforce this 
law. 

VACCINATION 

[Chapter 49, Public Health Law, as amended by Laws of 1915, 
Chapter 133] 

The Court of Appeals, in a decision recently rendered, declared 
that part of the public health law relating to the vaccination of 
children constitutional. This law applies to cities as well as school 
districts. 

The Supreme Court of the United States also held that the 
Massachusetts law, which is similar to the New York law, was not 
an infraction of the United States Constitution. Opinion by Justice 
Harlan, February 20, 1905. 

Unvaccinated Children Not Entitled to Attend School in Cities 
of the First or Second Class. — No child or person who has not 
been vaccinated shall be admitted or received into any public school 
in a city of the first or second class. School authorities are required 



MEDICAL INSPECTION, VACCINATION, ETC. 20/ 

to enforce this provision of the law. While the enforcement of the 
law is under the supervision of the school authorities it is incumbent 
upon the health authorities to provide, at the expense of the city, 
for vaccination of all pupils in attendance upon the schools whose 
parents or guardians do not provide vaccination. 

Enforcement of Vaccination Law in Cities of the Third Class 
and in School Districts. — Vaccination is not to be enforced 
against school children in cities of third class or in school districts, 
unless the State Commissioner of Health certifies in writing to the 
school authorities in charge of any school in such territory that 
smallpox exists in such city or district, or in the vicinity thereof. 
When the Commissioner of Health issues such certificate it is the 
duty of the school authorities to exclude from school all children 
who do not furnish a certificate to the effect that they have been 
successfully vaccinated with vaccine virus or that an examination 
of the child furnishes evidence by scar of a successful previous 
vaccination. The enforcement of this law is placed upon the 
school authorities. It is the duty of the local board of health, how- 
ever, when school authorities are enforcing this law, to provide for 
the vaccination of all children whose parents or guardians do not 
provide such vaccination. 

Expense of Vaccination. — The expense incurred in the 
vaccination of pupils under health authorities is a charge upon the 
municipality in which the child or person vaccinated resides. 

Method of Vaccination. — Only licensed physicians may per- 
form vaccination, and the operation must be in such manner only 
as the State Commissioner of Health prescribes. 

Certified Vaccine Virus. — A physician is prohibited from using 
vaccine virus unless the same is produced under a license issued 
by the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States and is 
accompanied by a certificate of approval of the State Commissioner 
of Health. The approval of the Commissioner of Health will spec- 
ify the period of time within which such vaccine virus may be used. 
It may not legally be used after that period. 

Report of Vaccination. — The Commissioner of Health is re- 
quired to prepare blank forms on which every physician performing 
vaccination shall make a report to the Commissioner within ten 
days after performing such vaccination. This certificate must in- 
* elude the full name and age of the person vaccinated ; if the person 
vaccinated is a minor, the name and address of his parent ; date of 



2o8 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

vaccination; date of previous vaccination; name of maker of vac- 
cine virus, and lot or batch number of same. 

PHYSICAL TRAINING 

General Provisions. — The Legislature of 1916 enacted a 
physical training law requiring that all children in attendance on 
the elementary and secondary schools above the age of eight years 
shall receive as a part of the prescribed course of instruction such 
physigal training as the Regents of the University shall require. 
This instruction must cover a period of at least twenty minutes in 
each school day. The Regents are given general power to prescribe 
regulations to govern the course of study, the qualifications of 
teachers, and for carrying out the recommendations of the military 
training commission which the Regents may adopt. Under the 
military training law enacted by the same Legislature, a military 
training commission is established which is given advisory powers 
in connection with the physical training given in the schools. The 
full responsibility for the enforcement of the physical training law, 
however, is vested in the Board of Regents. 

Powers of Boards of Education. — The board of education of 
each city, union free-school district and town is required under the 
provisions of this law to employ a competent teacher to supervise 
instruction in physical training when there are sufficient pupils in 
the schools for this purpose. The law further confers upon boards 
of education of two or more districts, or towns, the power to jointly 
employ a teacher for this purpose. Such boards must employ a 
teacher when so directed by the Commissioner of Education. The 
physical training law was enacted before the enactment of the 
township law. It was not possible for a trustee in thousands of 
the. one-teacher schools to employ a teacher of physical training for 
the pupils in his district. Under these conditions it was necessary 
for the trustees of two or more districts to unite in employing such 
teacher. The township law corrects this situation by uniting sev- 
eral schools under one board of control and this board now has the 
power to employ one physical instructor for all the schools of the 
town. The boards of two or more towns may also unite in making 
a contract with a teacher. 

Private Schools. — The provisions of this law apply to private 
schools as well as to public schools, and all pupils over eight years of 



MEDICAL INSPECTION, VACCINATION, ETC. 209 

age in attendance on private schools must receive the same instruc- 
tion in physical training that pupils receive in the public schools. 
If such instruction is not provided in private schools, children in 
attendance on such schools are not to be deemed as receiving in- 
struction, under the compulsory education law, as substantially the 
equivalent of the instruction given in public schools. 

State Aid. — The State is required to apportion to each dis- 
trict, town or city employing a teacher of physical training an 
amount equal to one-half the salary paid such teacher, provided 
that in no case shall the amount exceed $600. 

Teachers. — No teacher may be employed to give instruction in 
physical training or to supervise such instruction who is not certified 
under the rules of the Regents. 

MILITARY INSTRUCTION 

Military Training Commission. — This commission, under the 
military training law of 1916, is composed of the Major-General 
of the National Guard, who is chairman of the commission, a mem- 
ber to be appointed by the Regents of the University, and a mem- 
ber to be appointed by the Governor. The appointed members are 
to serve four years. The members of this commission receive no 
compensation but are reimbursed for traveling expenses. 

Inspector of Physical Training. — The military training com- 
mission is authorized to appoint an inspector of physical training, 
whose salary shall not exceed $5,000 per year, and such other as- 
sistants and clerks as are necessary at salaries to be fixed by the 
commission. This man is expected to advise and confer with the 
Regents of the University on courses of instruction in physical 
training to be prescribed in the elementary and secondary schools. 
The commission is required to recommend to the Board of Regents 
the establishment in the elementary and secondary schools of 
" habits, customs and methods best adapted to develop correct 
physical posture and bearing, mental and physical alertness, sell- 
control, disciplined initiative, sense of duty and the spirit of co- 
operation under leadership." 

Who Shall Receive Training. — i. This law does not apply to 

any agricultural college or any institution in this State whicfe 

receives the benefits of the act of congress of July 2nd, 1862, prc^- 

viding for instruction in agriculture, the mechanic arts, and military 

14 



2IO NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

training, and in which instruction in military tactics is now required 
of pupils. 

2. Under the provisions of this law all boys above the age of 
sixteen and not over nineteen years, except boys exempted by the 
commission, are required to receive the military training prescribed 
by the commission. 

Such requirement as to military training may in the discretion of 
the commission be met in part by such vocational training or voca- 
tional experience as will, in the opinion of the commission, specifi- 
cally prepare boys of the ages named for service useful to the state, 
in the maintenance of defense, in the promotion of public safety, 
in the conservation and development of the State's resources, or 
in the construction and maintenance of ^publip improvements. 

Period of Training. — The period of training required under 
this measure is not more than three hours in each week, between 
September first of each year and the fifteenth day of June next 
ensuing. Such training periods, in the case of pupils in schools and 
colleges, shall be in addition to prescribed periods of other instruc- 
tion therein and outside the time assigned therefor. 

Who May Give Such Instruction. — The instruction required 
under this law must be under the supervision of the military train- 
ing commission. Only male teachers and physical instructors of 
schools and colleges who^ are approved by the military training 
commission, or officers and enlisted men in the National Guard and 
Naval Militia or the United States Army, may be employed as 
instructors. 

Field Training. — The law further provides for field training 
for boys above the age of sixteen and not over nineteen years. 
For the purpose of providing this field training summer camps may 
be established and maintained. This training must be given during 
the summer months and must cover a period of not less than two 
or more than four weeks, as the commission may determine. No 
boy is entitled to enter one of these camps who is not accepted by 
the commission. The commission is required to give preference to 
boys in the following order: 

1. Male pupils in attendance on the secondary schools during the 
preceding year ; 

2. Pupils in attendance at State agricultural schools and State 
agricultural colleges during the preceding year; i» 

3. Other boys not included in the above. 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 211 

State and Other Property for Use of Camps. — It is required 

under the law that fair grounds throughout the State owned by 
societies which receive funds from the State shall be used for camps, 
on the request of the training commission, when such grounds are 
not in use for other purposes. If a society refuses to permit the 
use of its grounds for this purpose, the funds to which the society 
is entitled from the State shall be withheld. 

School authorities are also authorized to permit the use of school 
buildings and school grounds for the purposes of carrying out the 
provisions relating to military training. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

When was the medical law enacted? To what sections of the State does 
it apply? Who are charged with its enforcement? Who have no responsibiH- 
ties in its enforcement? Is the law mandatory? What are the quaUfications 
of a medical inspector? Must such inspector be a resident of the city in 
which he is employed? A union free-school district or town? What 
qualifications must a nurse possess? What number of inspectors must be 
employed in each city? How many nurses? How many inspectors in a 
union free-school district? How many nurses? What is the requirement 
in relation to appointment of medical inspectors in a town? Nurses? What 
ruling has been made in relation to nurses making a physical examination 
of pupils? 

When must pupils present a health certificate? What notice is required? 
When may a medical inspector examine a pupil ? By whom is a health 
certificate issued? What should be done with such certificate? When must 
a parent meet the expense of an examination of his child? When not? May 
a parent waive his right to furnish a health certificate? What follows? How 
often must the eyes and ears of a pupil be tested? By whom are such 
tests made? Who may assist? Does the presentation of a health certificate 
exempt a pupil from a test of eyes and ears? When should additional 
tests of these organs be made? When important physical defects are 
discovered, what action should school authorities take? What is then the 
duty of parents. When should school authorities provide relief for defects 
of children? What precaution should be taken? Has a medical inspector 
authority to incur expenses in such matters? When may he? May a 
medical inspector receive compensation from parents of children for the 
treatment of such children? What advice should a medical inspector give 
children or their parents about consulting physicians? 

When should a pupil be excluded from school? When a pupil is affected 
with a contagious or infectious disease, what should be done with such 
pupil? How may a pupil who has been absent from school by illness be 
admitted to school again? What is the law in regard to the examination of 
teachers, janitors, etc. 

State the provisions of the vaccination law as it applies to cities of the first 



212 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

class. To cities of all other classes and school districts. Who is required 
to enforce the vaccination law? In cities of the first class, who meets the 
expense of children vaccinated by public authorities? In other cities and in 
school districts? Who may vaccinate? How must the operation be per- 
formed? What vaccine virus may be used ? For what period of time? What 
report is required? 

When was the physical training law enacted? To what children does it 
apply? What is the minimum instruction required? Who is charged with 
the general administration of such law? Who prescribes courses of study? 
Regulations? Who may make recommendations to the Regents on such 
matters? What body has advisory powers only? What local school authori- 
ties are required to enforce the physical training law? Who must employ 
teachers in a city? Union free-school district? Town? What power has 
the Commissioner of Education to direct the employment of teachers? To 
what extent does this law apply to private schools ? How does a failure to 
provide such instruction affect a private school ? What financial aid is given 
by the State to aid in the enforcement of this law? What teachers may be 
employed to give instruction in physical training or to supervise such 
instruction ? 

Of whom is the military training commission composed? What compensa- 
tion do the members of such commission receive? Who is authorized to 
appoint an inspector of physical training? At what salary? What advice is 
he supposed to give? What recommendation does the Commission make to 
the Regents? What institutions are exempt from the provisions of the 
military training law? To w^hat boys do the provisions of this law apply? 
What period of training is required? Who may give such training? What 
field training must be provided? What boys must be given the preference? 
What public property may be used for this training? 



CHAPTER XXIV 

CONTRACTS FOR EDUCATION OF CHILDREN TRANSFER OF CHILDREN 

TRANSPORTATION OF CHILDREN — FREE TUITION 

ACADEMIC INSTRUCTION 

[Article 21] 

Contracts Between Districts for Education of Children. — For 

several years the law has authorized a school district to provide for 
the maintenance of school by contracting for the education of its 
children with another district. The provisions of this law remain 
operative until the end of the school year on July 31, 1918. Trus- 
tees of school districts, previous to July 31, 1917, possessed the 
power to contract for the education of the children of their district 
in the school maintained in another district when authorized by 
vote of district. 

The provisions of the township law supersede, and therefore 
nullify, the provisions of what is generally known as the contract 
system between school districts. Before a school district could enter 
into the contract system, it was necessary for the voters of the dis- 
trict to authorize such contract. Trustees were then required to 
comply with the instruction given them in relation to making such 
contract. While the township law continues school districts in their 
present form, they are continued for the sole purpose of establishing 
specific territories within which public schools shall be maintained. 
The district officers in these districts were abolished on August i, 
1917, in so far as the district officers could take official action in 
relation to new matters or affairs in which the people of the district 
are interested. These officers were continued for the sole purpose 
of closing up outstanding affairs, paying the debts, etc., of the dis- 
trict. They may take any action necessary for the performance of 
these functions, but they have no authority to authorize any action 
relating to the conduct of schools or pertainino- to the affairs of the 
schools in a town school unit. There is no method afforded under 
present statutes, after the current school year by which contracts 
may be authorized between school districts. 

213 



214 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Transfer of Pupils. — The law provides that a town board of 
education may provide for the transfer of pupils to a school in an 
adjoining town, union free-school district, or city. In many cases 
children in a section of a town are so located that it would be more 
convenient for these children to attend a school in a town adjoining 
or in a union free school district adjoining such town, or even in a 
city, than to attend a school in the district in which they reside or 
in the town in which their school district is located. To meet these 
unusual cases, this provision was incorporated in the township law. 
The primary purpose of this provision of the law is to meet the 
convenience of the children without imposing a hardship or injustice 
upon the adjoining town, union free-school district, or city. The 
theory is that all schools are State schools and that the State makes 
an annual payment for the maintenance of all such schools. These 
schools should be 'administered, therefore, in the interests of the 
State and to meet the conveniences of all the children of the State. 

When a board of education believes a transfer of this kind 
should be made such board should give written notice thereof to the 
board of education of the town, union free-school district, or city 
to which it is proposed to transfer such pupils. It is assumed, of 
course, that in the administration of this law a town board of edu- 
cation will not transfer sueh pupils until it has talked the proposi- 
tion over in advance and come to an agreement upon the compen- 
sation to be paid with the board of the town, district, or city to 
which such pupils are transferred. 

If there is any disagreement between the two boards in relation 
to the acceptance of such pupils the order of the town boards trans- 
ferring the pupils in question mist be approved by the Commissioner 
of Education before such order becomes effective. 

The law specifically provides that the Commissioner of Educa- 
tion shall not approve the transfer of such pupils when such trans- 
fer will require the town, union free-school district, or city receiv- 
ing such pupils to provide either additional teachers or other school 
accommodations. 

The amount of compensation which a town, union free-school 
district, or city may receive for instructing pupils transferred in 
this manner may be determined by agreement between the two 
boards of education. If such boards are unable to come to an 
agreement on the question of compensation the subject may be 
referred to the Gommissioner of Education for determination. In 



CONTRACTS FOR EDUCATION OF CHILDREN, ETC. 215 

arriving at a conclusion in such a case the Commissioner of Edu- 
cation must use as a basis in fixing the amount of such compensa- 
tion, the per capita cost of instruction of pupils in the town, union 
free-school district, or city in which such children were educated. 

The cost of the instruction of such pupils shall be a charge against 
the town in which such pupils reside, and the board of education of 
that town must provide for the payment of the cost of such instruc- 
tion out of the school funds of the town in the same manner as other 
expenses for the maintenance of the schools are provided for and 
paid. When pupils are thus transferred the board of education of 
the town, union free-school district, or city to which the transfer is 
made should present to the board of education of the town in which 
such pupils reside a verified statement of the cost of the instruc- 
tion of such pupils and such statement must be signed by the chair- 
man and clerk of the board of education. 

Cost of Instruction. — Where reference is made in the law to 
the compensation to be paid to a union free-school district, town or 
city for receiving such pupils, it is to the effect that it must be on 
" cost of the instruction of such pupils." 

It is clearly the intention of this law that no hardship or injustice 
shall be imposed upon a union free-school district, town, or city in 
receiving pupils under this provision of law. Since schools wher- 
ever maintained are State schools and the State contributes to their 
general support and maintenance, the State may properly require 
reasonable adjustment of such schools to the general needs of the 
State. It was the theory of the Legislature that a district should 
receive pupils living outside its boundaries, when by so doing these 
pupils would be relieved of great inc*)nvenience or hardship caused 
by being required to attend school in their home district. At the 
same time, it is clearly the intention of the law that a district receiv- 
ing such pupils shall not suffer financial loss, but shall be reimbursed 
for the actual cost of instruction. The question, therefore, is what 
does this expression mean as used in the statute? 

The Chief of the Statistics Division compiled a pamphlet in 1916 
relating to uniform school accounting. The plan of accounting 
outlined in this document has been prescribed by the Education 
Department for the use of school boards throughout the State, and 
had been in force for some time previous to the enactment of this 
law. On page 11, form 3, under the caption, "Instructional Ser- 
vices, is a general outline of what may be included under expend- 



\ 



2l6 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

ilures for instruction in public schools. The Education Department 
has ruled that this must be accepted as including the items which 
may be set by a board of education in determining the cost of instruc- 
tion, and, therefore, the tuition which may be charged pupils by 
guch boards pursuant to the provision of the said section 342 of the 
Education Law. In determining such cost of instruction a board 
of education may not include interest on cost of school plant, the 
amount of bonds maturing during the year, the amount expended 
for repairs or construction or any other item except the items in- 
cluded in the following outline: 

FORM 3 — INSTRUCTIONAL SERVICE 

3-1 Supervisors* salaries. Where a supervisor gives a portion of 
his time to teaching, distribute the salary between 3-1 and 3-9 
in proportion to the time devoted to supervision and teaching 
respectively. 

3-2 Other expenses of supervisors of grades and subjects. Trav- 
eling and other expenses allowed in attending conventions, 
institutions, etc., street car fares, report blanks, stationery 
used by supervisors. 

3-3 Principals' salaries. If principals teach, divide the salary 
between 3-3 and 3-9 proportionately to the relative time de- 
voted to supervision and teaching as above. 

3-4 Salary of principal's clerk. Supply teachers acting in that 
capacity in principal's office. If any of these persons teach, 
divide the salary as above between 3-4 and 3-9. 

3-5 Principals' office supplies. Stationery, blank forms, report 
cards, class books, attendance registers, permanent record 
cards, etc. 

3-6 Other expenses of principals' office. Traveling and other ex- 
penses allowed in attending conventions, institutes, etc., car 
fare. 

8-7 Blank column reserved for further classification if desired. 

3-8 Other expense of supervision. Teachers' traveling and other 
, expenses allowed in attending conventions, institutes, etc., cost 
of institute speakers, and other institute cost. Common sense 
must be used to decide just where supervision leaves off and 
teaching begins. In general this matter can be settled by 
answering the question, " Does the item paid for actually teach 
the children or does it make better teachers ? " 

1-9 Teachers' salaries. Exclude proportionate part of salary for 
time spent as supervisor, principal, principal's clerk or super- 
intendent's assistant. This includes teachers of all grades 
, and subjects. 



CONTRACTS FOR EDUCATION OF CHILDREN, ETC. 21/ 

3-10 Textbooks if furnished to pupils. If textbooks are furnished 
only to indigent pupils, charge in column 9-13. Include sup- 
plementary reading books. 

3-1 1 Other supplies used in instruction. This includes paper, 

chalk, ink, pencils, other schoolroom supplies, laboratory sup- 
plies and materials, supplies used in teaching cooking, sewing, 
drawing, manual training, art, music, kindergarten and physi- 
cal training, etc. It should be noted that a supply is some- 
thing, the use of which involves its consumption, breakage or 
probable loss, while a piece of equipment is an article which 
is used year after year. Care should be taken to exclude from 
supplies used in instruction any article made of durable mate- 
rial which is supposed to last year after year with reasonable 
use. No permanent laboratory apparatus or equipment is to 
be included in this column. Supplies for recreation, athletics, 
school gardens, school lunches and all other auxiliary activities 
enter on form 9 and not in this column. 

3-12 Commencement exercises and exhibits. Expense of music, 
palms, printing programs, renting chairs, moving piano, etc., 
for commencement exercises or school entertainments. 

3-13 Blank, reserved for further subdivision of instructional service 
if desired. 

Transportation of Pupils. — The town board of education is 
authorized under the provisions of the township law to provide for 
the transportation of children who live so remote from school that 
they are practically deprived of school advantages during any por- 
tion of the school year. A town board of education may include 
in its budget an item for this purpose. A town board is authorized 
to provide transportation and meet the expense thereof, without 
vote of the people of the town. Such transportation may be pro- 
vided when children attend school either in the town in which such 
children reside, or attend school in an adjoining town, union free- 
school district or city. 

Parents Not Entitled to Compensation for Conveying Pupils. 
— To vote compensation to a parent from the public funds for 
taking his child to and from school was not intended under the 
contract law. The intent of the law in providing for transportation 
was that it should be regular and daily; that individual parents 
should not derive pecuniary advantage from it; and that nothing 
should be left to parental convenience or caprice. The general rule 
should be that one person of proper character, furnishing suitable 
accommodations, should be regularly employed, and the contract 
for transportation should be awarded, after opportunity for com- 



2l8 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

petition, to the most reliable party who will furnish the best trans- 
portation at the lowest cost to the district. (Com'r Draper, No. 
5219, October 31, 1905.) 

The Commissioner of Education will not approve a contract for 
the education of children when it is shown that-the distance, such 
children must travel to attend school is so great as to practically 
deprive them of school privileges, until transportation is provided 
for such children. ' • 

STATE TUITION FOR NON-RESIDENT PUPILS IN ACADEMIC 

DEPARTMENTS 

[Section 493] 

Object. — The object of this law which has caused so much 
discussion is to bring within the reach of every boy and girl in the 
State a complete academic education. 

Approved Schools. — No school can receive tuition from the 
State for the attendance of pupils under this act unless such school 
is approved by the State Education Department. To be approved 
a school must maintain a satisfactory course of study, sufficient 
teaching force, adequate equipment, and suitable school building 
facilities. 

Schools Entitled to Compensation. — To entitj^e a school to 
receive compensation for the instruction of non-resident pupils, such 
pupils must have been in regular attendance in the academic depart- 
ment thereof for a period of not less than eight weeks, and they 
must reside in districts of the State not maintaining an academic 
department. 

Pupils Who May be Admitted. — All pupils residing within the 
State and in districts not maintaining an academic department may 
be admitted into any of the approved schools by presenting to the 
local authorities a Regents' preliminary certificate. Students pos- 
sessing equivalent qualifications covering elementary work will be 
admitted after their credentials have been approved by the State 
Education Department. The holders of uniform teachers' certifi- 
cates meet the requirements. Pupils are not required to attend the 
school nearest their residence, but may attend any approved school 
where the school authorities admit them under this act. Pupils 
residing in districts which maintain less than a four years' course 
may be admitted to schools of higher grade after completing the 



CONTRACTS FOR EDUCATION OF CHILDREN, ETC. 219 

course of study prescribed for the school of the district in which 
they reside. 

Schools May Charge Pupils. — A school receiving non-resident 
pupils at State expense may, with the approval of the Commissioner 
of Education, charge a pupil the customary rate of of tuition upon 
the condition that the district or townships in which such pupil 
resides or his parent or guardian assumes the difference between 
the amount paid by the State and the customary amount of tuition 
charged. 

A school is not required to furnish non-resident students with 
free textbooks or any other accommodation not fairly included 
tinder the term tuition. 

Tuition Not Chargeable for Certain Students. — An approved 
school receiving non-resident pupils under this act will not be en- 
titled to tuition for members of teachers' training schools or train- 
ing classes. Nor will such schools be entitled to. State tuition for 
pupils in the academic department from districts contracting with 
such approved school for the education of their children, unless the 
expense incurred by the contracting district, including transporta- 
tion of pupils, exceeds $250. After July 31, 1918, there will be no 
pupils under what has generally been known as the contract system. 
The State will not pay the tuition of non-resident pupils in attend- 
ance on any department or grade below the academic department. 

Compensation. — An approved school receiving non-resident 
pupils under this act is entitled to $20 per year tuition for a school 
year of at least thirty-two weeks, or a proportionate amount for a 
shorter period of attendance of not less than eight weeks. This 
amount will be apportioned and paid by the State to the schools 
receiving such students. 

Effect of Township Law. — The enactment of the township 
law does not modify in any way whatever the law regulating the 
right of students, living in school districts which do not maintain 
academic departments, to attend school in a school district which 
does maintain such department, nor does such law modify in any 
way whatever the payment of tuition by the State to the school 
receiving such students. Such students may continue to attend 
academic schools as non-resident students as they have in former 
years, and the district receiving them will receive the same appor- 
tionment of public funds from the State which it has formerly 
received. 



220 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

A pupil, living in a school district which does not maintain an 
academic school, may attend the academic school maintained in the 
town in which such pupil resides, or such pupil may attend an aca- 
demic school maintained in some other town. If a high school 
is maintained in any district in the town a student, residing in any 
other district of such town in which a high school is not maintained, 
has the right to attend such high school by meeting the requirements 
prescribed for admission thereto. No charge may be made for the 
tuition of such pupil. If a charge for tuition, in addition to that 
paid by the State, is made by the authorities of a school for the 
attendance of non-resident pupils who live in a town in which a 
high school is maintained, it is within the discretion of the town 
board of education, having control of the school in which such 
pupil resides, to determine whether or not such town shall pay such 
additional charges. If the town board determines not to pay such 
charges, the amount of such additional tuition must be paid by the 
parents of the pupil. A town board may not adopt a rule which is 
binding upon pupils residing within the town which will prevent 
such students from attending a high school outside of the town. 

Academic Instruction Must Be Provided. — Each township must 
provide suitable instruction for its resident school children. Where 
such children have successfully completed the work of the eighth 
grade, instruction in advance of such grade should be provided. 
If no academic department is maintained in the town, the town board 
of education should provide for such instruction by contract with 
another town, union free-school district or city, or by transferring 
the pupils to an academic school. The town school budget should 
contain an item for the instruction of such children and for their 
transportation where necessary. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

What effect has the township law upon the contract system? Explain. 
What is the law regulating the transfer of pupils by a board of education 
to another school in an adjoining town, city or school district? When must 
a board receive such pupils and provide instruction for them? What items 
may be included in determining the cost of instructions? How may trans- 
portation be provided for school children? When? Are parents entitled to 
receive compensation for conveying their children to school? What general 
rule in relation to such matter was established by Commissioner Draper? 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 221 

What is the object of the non-resident free tuition law? What schools 
may receive pupils? What schools may be approved? What period of time 
must pupils attend to entitle a district to funds? Explain fully what pupils 
may be admitted. When may a school charge pupils additional tuition? 
What amount ? Are schools required to accept such pupils ? For what pupils 
may not tuition be charged? What compensation does the State pay? 
Explain fully the effect of the township law on this plan. 



CHAPTER XXV 

SPECIAL CLASSES FOR MENTALLY RETARDED — PHYSICALLY DEFECTIVE 

ORPHAN SCHOOLS — STATE INSTITUTIONS FOR DEAF AND 

DUMB AND FOR THE BLIND 

CHILDREN MENTALLY RETARDED 

Enumeration of. — It is the duty of the board of education of 
each union free-school district, town or city to take an enumeration 
of all the children residing in such district, town, or city, who are 
in attendance upon the public school therein and who are three 
years or more retarded in mental development. 

Special Classes for. — The board of education of each district, 
town, or city in which there are ten or more children of such 
retarded development, is required to establish special classes which 
shall not contain more than fifteen pupils for the education of such 
children. The instruction provided in these classes must be adapted 
to the mental attainments of such children. As many classes shall 
be maintained as are necessary to provide adequate education for 
all children of this type. 

Classes Maintained by Contract. — In a union free-school dis- 
trict, town or city in which there are less than ten children of this 
type, the board of education is authorized to contract with another 
district, town, or city which has established classes for such type of 
children. 

Regulations. — The Commissioner of Education is authorized 
to prescribe regulations to govern the enumeration of such children, 
and the classes which are to be maintained for their instruction. 

State Aid. — No special aid is provided by the State to assist 
communities in meeting the special needs of this type of children. 
Each teacher employed in a special class of this kind will entitle 
the district, town or city in which she is employed to the teacher's 
quota of $100. » 

222 



SPECIAL CLASSES FOR MENTALLY RETARDED, ETC. 223 

PHYSICALLY DEFECTIVE CHILDREN 

Enumeration of.— It is the duty of the board of education of 
each union free-school district, town, or city to take an enumeration 
of the physically defective children residing in the district, town or 
city over which such board has jurisdiction. This enunteration must 
include all children who are under the age of- eighteen years, and 
who are deaf, blind, or so crippled or otherwise physically defective 
as to be unable to attend upon instruction in regular classes main- 
tained in public schools. 

Special Instruction.— It is the duty of the boards of education 
of a school district, town, or city in which there are ten or more 
such physically defective children, to establish such special classes 
as may be necessary to provide instruction adapted to the mental 
attainments and physical conditions of such children. 

It is contemplated under this law that there should be ten pupils 
of the same type in order to require a board of education to estab^ 
Hsh a special class. If there are ten deaf children a special class 
should be established for children of this type. If there are ten 
or more blind children a class should be established for children 
of such type. If there are ten or more crippled children a special 
class should be organized for such children. The intention of the 
law is that a room should be set apart in the school building or in 
such number of school buildings as may be necessary to accommo- 
date the number of children in the district or city, and to make 
such classes reasonably accessible to the children from all parts of 
the city. 

Classes Maintained by Contract.— When there are less than 
ten children of either of the above types residing in a district, town 
or city, a board of education may contract for the education of such 
children with a board of education of another district, town or city 
in which special classes have been organized for the instruction of 
children of such types. 

Regulations. — The Commissioner of Education is authorized 
to prescribe regulations to govern the enumeration of such children, 
and the classes which are to be maintained for their instruction. 

State Aid. — No special aid is provided by the State to assist 
communities in meeting the special needs of this type of children. 
Each teacher employed in a special class of this kind will entitle the 
district, town or city in which she is employed to the teacher's 
quota of $ioo. 



224 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

ORPHAN SCHOOLS 
[Article 35] 

The schools of all the incorporated orphan asylum societies in 
this State, except those in the city of New York, are subject to the 
rules and regulations of the common schools of the city or district 
in which such societies are located, but such schools are under the 
immediate management and direction of such societies. 

These schools are entitled to participate in the apportionment of 
the school moneys in the same manner and to the same extent, in 
proportion to the number of children educated therein, as are the 
common schools in the districts in which such societies are located. 

The presiding officer of each asylum maintaining a school must 
make an annual report to the Commissioner of Education, showing 
the number of pupils therein, the studies pursued by them, the time 
devoted thereto, and the manner in which public funds apportioned 
it have been expended. 

INDIAN SCHOOLS 

[Article 37] 

General Statement. — There are eight Indian reservations in 
this State. On these reservations thirty-three Indian schools are 
maintained, in which are employed thirty-six teachers. These res- 
ervations are located as follows : 

Name of Reservation. County of Location. 

Allegany Allegany 

Cattaraugus Cattaraugus and Erie 

Onondaga Onondaga 

Poospatuck Suffolk 

St. Regis Franklin and St. Lawrence 

Shinnecock Suffolk 

Tonawanda Erie 

Tuscarora Niagara 



Duty of Commissioner of Education. — The Commissioner of 
Education is charged with general supervision of the Indian schools. 
He should ascertain the needs and character of the education of 
the various Indian bands in the State, and provide schools in such 
places as he deems necessary. He employs all necessary teachers, 
truant officers, and other assistants and employees and fixes their 



SPECIAL CLASSES FOR MENTALLY RETARDED^ ETC. 225 

salaries. He erects school buildings when funds are appropriated 
therefor. 

Co-operation of Indians. — The Commissioner of Education 
is charged with obtaining the co-operation of the several bands of 
Indians in supporting the schools established for their benefit. He 
is required to visit their reservations, or delegate some representative 
to visit them, to discuss means of improvement and education with 
them in public assembly and to induce them, if possible, to donate 
land, material, labor, and public funds for the erection of suitable 
buildings. 

Protection to Title. — When any of the Indian land shall have 
been given for occupancy or use for school purposes the right or 
title of Indians to such land should be protected. The right of the 
State to remove or otherwise dispose of all improvements made 
at the expense of the State should be reserved in all contracts. 

Annual Appropriation. — For the purpose of executing the 
provisions of law relating to Indian schools, the Legislature makes 
an annual appropriation. This money is paid by the State Treas- 
urer on the warrant of the Comptroller to the order of the Com- 
missioner of Education, from time to time, as such money is 
needed. Special appropriations from the general fund are some- 
times made by the Legislature for repairs and improvements on the 
school property of reservations. 

Vouchers and Receipts. — The Commissioner of Education is 
required to file in his office vouchers and receipts for all expend- 
itures made under the provisions of this chapter. 

Report to Legislature. — The Commissioner of Education is 
required to report annually to the Legislature the condition of 
Indian schools. 

DEAF AND DUMB AND BLIND INSTITUTIONS 

[Article 38] 

Duty of Commissioner of Education. — All institutions for the 
instruction of the deaf and dumb and blind, and all other similar 
institutions incorporated under the laws of this State are under the 
inspection and supervision of the Commissioner of Education. He 
should ascertain the expenditures of each institution, the system of 
instruction pursued therein, and the condition of the lodgings and 
accommodations of the pupils. 
15 



226 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

He should ascertain by comparing these institutions with similar 
institutions whether improvements in instruction and discipline can 
be made. For this purpose he may appoint persons to visit these 
institutions. He should also suggest to the directors of these insti- 
tutions and to the State Legislature those improvements and changes 
which in his judgment are deemed wise. 

Annual Report. — The Commissioner of Education is required 
to make an annual report to the State Legislature on all matters 
relating to these institutions; particularly to the condition of the 
schools, the improvement of the pupils, and their treatment in respect 
to board and lodging. 

Eligibility of Appointments of Deaf and^Dumb Persons. — ^A 
deaf and dumb person to receive an appointment as a State pupil 
tp an institution for the deaf and dumb must possess the following 
qualifications : Such person must be upwards of twelve years of 
age and have been a resident of the State for one year immediately 
preceding his or her application for admission to such institution ; 
or, if a minor, the parent or parents, or if an orphan, the nearest 
friend must have been a resident of this State for one year imme- 
diately preceding the application for an appointment as a State 
pupil. 

Upon the application of a parent, guardian or friend of a deaf- 
mute child, residing in this State and between the ages of five and 
twelve years, the overseer of the poor or the supervisor of the 
town in which such child may be, is required to place that child in 
one of the institutions named in section 978 of the Education Law. 
The child must be maintained in that institution at the expense of 
the county from which she was appointed, but the expense shall not 
exceed three hundred fifty dollars per year. If the director of 
the institution to which the child is committed finds that the child 
is not a proper subject to remain in said institution, the instituton 
is not required to continue to care for the child. 

Eligibility of Blind Persons for Appointment as State Pupils. — 
All blind persons of suitable age (no specific age required by law) 
who possess the same qualifications in regard to residence as deaf 
and dumb candidates, may be appointed State pupils as follows : 

All those who are residents of Nassau, New'York, King§, Queens, - 
Suffolk, Richmond, Westchester, Putnam, 'and Rockland shall be 
appointed to the Institution for the Blind in New York city. 





SPECIAL CLASSES OF MENTALLY RETARDED 22/ 

Those residing in all other counties in the State should be appointed 
to the Batavia institution. 

By Whom Appointments are Made. — Appointments of State 
pupils to any of these, institutions, except the Institution for the 
Blind in Batavia, are made by the Commissioner of Education upon 
application. In making such appointments the Commissioner of 
Education may impose the condition, in the case of parents or 
guardians or friends who have sufficient means, that some portion 
of the expense of educating and clothing such pupil shall be borne 
by the parent, guardian or friend. The Commissioner also has 
the authority to modify such conditions whenever he deems it 
wise to do so. Appointments to the Batavia institution are made 
to the board of trustees, and must be approved by the county judge 
or county clerk of the county or the supervisor or town clerk of the 
town or the mayor of the city in which the applicant resides. 

Support of State Pupils. — A State pupil appointed to any of 
these institutions must be provided with board, lodging, and tuition. 
The deaf and dumb institutions and the blind institutions are en- 
titled to receive such sum for each pupil to be paid quarterly as the 
Legislature appropriates. State pupils who are children of indigent 
parents or guardians are supplied with^lothing by the counties from 
which they are ^appointed. 

The treasurer of each institution should present a bill showing 
the number of pupils and the time each pupil attended, to the State 
Comptroller for audit and payment. 

This bill must be signed and verified by oath of the president and 
secretary of the institution. The bill is paid by the State Treasurer 
on the warrant of the Comptroller. 

Term of Instruction. — The regu^r term of instruction for each 
pupil is five years, but the Commissioner of Education may extend 
such time not to extend three years. He may also extend the 
term to cover three years of instruction beyond the elementary 
course. j ' 

Regulations for Admission of Pupils. — The Commissioner of 
Education may establish regulations to require the admission of 
pupils at these institutions at regular periods. 

The Legislature of 1897 authorized the Albany Home School for 
the Oral Instruction of the Deaf to receive deaf and dumb persons 
who are eligible to appointment, and who are more than twelve 



228 .NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

years of age. The Commissioner of Education is also authorized 
to make appointments to this institution. 

County Must Supply Clothing. — If a parent or guardian of a 
State pupil in any of the institutions for the deaf and dumb is 
unable to furnish such pupil clothing, the board of supervisors of 
the county from which such pupil was appointed must raise each 
year for each of such pupils the sum of $30 for supplying clothing 
to such pupils. 

Payment for Aid to Blind Pupils Attending College. — The 
trustees of any college, university, technical or professional school 
located in this State, authorized to confer degrees except an insti- 
tution for the instruction of the blind, may designate blind students 
in attendance upon such institutions who are residents of this State 
as fit persons to receive special aid in doing the work required in 
such institution. Persons may be employed to read to such bhnd 
students from the textbooks or pamphlets used by such students in 
their studies at a compensation of $300 per year. 

The treasurer of any of such institutions aftei^ the beginning of 
a school year may present to the State Comptroller a verified state- 
ment showing the number of blind students regularly matriculated 
and working for a degree. No other student can be included. The 
Comptroller Will issue his warrant and thereon the State Treasurer 
will pay to the treasurer of such institution the amount to which the 
institution is entitled. The trustees of the institution will then 
disburse the moneys for the purposes aforesaid. 

Instruction for Blind Babies, etc, — The Commissioner of 
Education may in his discretion appoint children twelve years of 
age and under as State pupils in one of the homes for blind babies 
and children maintained by the International Sunshine Society, 
Brooklyn Home for Blind, Crippled and Defective Children and 
the Catholic Institute for the Blind. When these children are thus 
appointed to one of these homes the home receiving them is entitled 
to the same compensation that other institutions receive which may 
accept State blind pupils. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

Who is required to make an. enumeration of mentally retarded children? 
What children must be included? When must special classes be established? 
How manj'? What type of instruction must be provided? When may a 
board of education provide for the instruction of such children by contract? 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 229 

Who is authorized to prescribe regulations governing the subject? What 
aid is given by the State? 

Who is required to make an enumeration of physically defective children? 
What children must be included? What instruction must be provided? 
What is the interpretation of this law? When may classes t/e maintained 
by contract for these children? What power has the Commissioner of 
Education in such matter? What State aid is provided? 

How are the schools of the incorporated orphan asylum societies related 
to the public school system? To what pubHc money are they entitled? What 
report must be filed with the Education Department? What is the duty of 
the Commissioner of Education in relation to Indian schools? When may 
he cause school buildings to be erected on Indian reservations? What co- 
operation of the Indians should he enlist? What protection to title should 
be given to Indians when their land is used for school purposes? What 
right should be reserved to the State? What amount is annually appro- 
priated for this purpose? How is this money paid? What is done with 
the vouchers and receipts ? What reports must be made in relation to Indian 
reservations ? 

What jurisdiction has the Commissioner of Education over deaf and 
dumb and blind institutions? What knowledge of the work of these institu- 
tions should he possess? What report in relation to these institutions must 
be made? Who are eligible to appointment as State deaf and dumb pupils? 
Who are eligible to appointment as State pupils to blind institutions? By 
whom are these appointments made? In making these appointments what 
conditions may the Commissioner of Education impose? How are these 
State pupils supported? To whom are bills for these expenses presented? 
In what form? By whom are they paid? What is the regular period of 
instruction? What extension may be granted? Who adopts the regulations 
for admission of these pupils? What institution was authorized by the 
Legislature of 1897 to receive deaf and dumb pupils for instruction? When 
must a county provide pupils with clothing? Explain the conditions under 
which payments will be made by the State to assist blind pupils in attendance 
upon college. 



CHAPTER XXVI 

SCHOOL AND PUBLIC LIBRARIES 

[See Title 44] 

Apportionment of Library Moneys. — On account of the 
unification act it became desirable to unite the hbrary funds which 
had heretofore been distributed by the two former educational de- 
partments. The Legislature, therefore, now makes but one appro- 
priation for school libraries. This appropriation is for an amount 
equal to that given the two" old departments and the method of 
distribution is such that a school may draw from this fund as much 
money as it was allowed heretofore from both funds. The method 
of this apportionment will be found in the article which treats of 
school moneys. The method of distributing the money is as follows : 

An apportionment is made on or about the first of each month 
based on the applications received during the previous month. This 
apportionment is certified to the Comptroller. 

The State Treasurer upon the warrant of the Comptroller pays to 
each county treasurer, excepting in the counties comprising the city 
of New York, an amount equal to that apportioned to all of the 
schools in his county. 

The Commissioner of Edu(?ation then certifies to the county 
treasurer the schools to which money is due and the amount due to 
each. Upon receipt of this certificate from the Commissioner of 
Education the county treasurer pays the allotment to each of the 
schools entitled to receive the sam.e. 

In the city of New York all money due the city is paid to the 
city chamberlain and all money due to private academies is paid 
directly to the treasurer of the academy. 

Commissioner of Education Has General Supervision. — The 
Commissioner of Education has power to establish, modify, or 
abolish any regulation for the expenditure of school library money 
and the administration and care of school libraries. All provisions 
of law and rules of the Commissioner of Education for the man- 
agement of district libraries shall apply to the management of school 
libraries until modified as directed by law. 

230 



SCHOOL AND PUBLIC LIBRARIES 23I 

Expenditure of Library Money. — No part of the library money 
of a district — ■ either that raised by the district, apportioned from 
State funds, or received from any other source — shall be used for 
any other purpose than for the purchase of books, apparatus, or 
reproductions of standard works of art, and such books must be 
approved by the Commissioner of Education before being purchased. 

Commissioner May Withhold Money. — The Commissioner of 
Education may withhold from any city or district its share of public 
school moneys, for expending library money for any other purpose 
than the purchase of approved books, or for any other willful neg- 
lect or violation of law or of the regulations which the Commis- 
sioner has adopted. 

Librarian. — The board of education of a union free-school 
district and also the board of trustees of a common-school district 
shall appoint as librarian one of the teachers in the employ of their 
district. Such librarian and trustees or board of education, as the 
case may be, shall be responsible for the safekeeping and care of the 
books in the library of their district. They shall annually, and 
oftener if called upon, make a report as the Commissioner of Edu- 
cation shall direct concerning such library. If a board of educa- 
tion in a union free-school district fails to select a librarian, the 
teacher of English in such school becomes the librarian. If such 
district employs a librarian meeting the qualifications prescribed by 
the Commissioner of Education, the district is entitled to receive 
an additional teacher's quota from the State. If a librarian is not 
appointed in a district which is not a union free-school district-, the 
principal teacher becomes the librarian. 

Use of School Library. — A- school library is not intended to 
be a circulating library. It must be kept in the school building at 
all times and it forms a part of the school equipment. Pupils, 
school officers, teachers and other residents of the district, however, 
may, when the rules of the Commissioner of Education permit, bor- 
row any book in said library not needed for reference in the school- 
rooms. Such persons may not borrow more than one book at a 
time nor keep such book more than two weeks. 

Books of Which Libr^ary Shall Consist. — School libraries shall 
consist of reference books to be used in the school-room, suitable 
supplementary reading-books for pupils, books relating to the 
branches of study being pursued in the school, and pedagogic books 
for the assistance of teachers. The Commissioner of Education 



232 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

will not approve a list including several copies of a textbook upon 
any subject for the use of pupils. This would really be furnishing 
free textbooks, which is not permissible. 

Books May be Transferred to Free Library. — The books or 
library property of any city or union free-school district may be 
transferred by the board of education of such city or union free- 
school district to any township or other free public library under 
State supervision, upon condition that such library shall remain 
free to the people of such city or district. Such city or district 
may also aid by tax or in any other way in the establishment of 
such free public library. The same action may be taken by any 
common-school district in the State when a majority of the legal 
voters present and voting at any meeting^ duly convened, shall so 
direct. 

Release of School Authorities. — The approval of such transfer 
should be obtained from the Regents under their seal, and a receipt 
of such transfer should be taken from the officers of the free public 
library to whom the transfer is made. Such approval and such 
receipt shall thereafter relieve the school authorities of such districts 
or cities from further responsibility for said library and property 
transferred. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

How is library money now apportioned? By whom? On what basis? 
When? How does the money reach the county treasurer? The school 
districts ? 

For what purpose must library money be expended? What books may be 
purchased? What is the penalty for expending library money for other 
purposes than for books approved by the Commissioner of Education? 
What for failing or refusing to comply with the regulations of the Commis- 
sioner of Education? By whom is the librarian of a union free school 
appointed? Of a common school? Who must be selected librarian in either 
case? Who is responsible for the care and safe-keeping of a library? What 
reports must be made to the Commissioner of Education? 

May a school library be used as a circulating library? Where must the 
library be kept? Who may borrow books from such library? When? For 
what period? How many books at one time? Of what books must such 
library consist? May duplicate textbooks be purchased for pupils? Why? 
To whom may the library of a city or a union free-school district be trans- 
ferred? Upon what conditions must such transfer be made? By whom is 
such transfer made? When may a common-school district make such trans- 
fer? What aid may a city or a school district give to the establishment of 
this project? What approvals to such transfers should be obtained? What 
receipt? What is the effect of such approval and such receipt? 



CHAPTER XXVII 

STATE SCHOLARSHIPS — IN CORNELL UNIVERSITY — ■ IN OTHER 
COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES 

IN CORNELL UNIVERSITY 

[Article 40] 

Origin. — In 1862 Congress passed the National Land Grant 
Act, under the terms of which each State received thirty thousand 
acres of public land owned by the United States, for each repre- 
sentative that she had in Congress. This land was donated by 
the national government to the States and Territories of the Union 
for the purpose of establishing colleges for the benefit of agriculture 
and the mechanic arts. New York State received by this Act nine 
hundred ninety thousand acres of land. The State Legislature of 
1863 enacted a law providing that the revenue derived from. the sale 
of this land should be given, under certain conditions, to the author- 
ities of the People's College at Havana. The authorities of this 
college failed to meet the conditions prescribed by the Act of 1863, 
and the Legislature of 1865 provided that the revenue derived from 
the sale of this land should be given to the authorities of Cornell 
University. This Act of 1865 provided, among other conditions, 
that Ezra Cornell should contribute unreservedly $500,000 to the 
authorities of Cornell University, and that the University should 
receive annually one State scholar free of tuition for each assembly 
district in the State. As Mr. Cornell contributed the amount speci- 
fied, the revenue derived from the sale of this land was donated to 
the University. The amount realized by the State from the sale of 
this land was $688,576.12. The Legislature of 1895 enacted a law 
providing that this money should be placed under the control of the 
State, and that the State should pay annually to the trustees of 
Cornell University five per cent upon this fund. The University, 
therefore, receives annually $34,428.80. The State scholars in the 
University who receive free tuition include about one-seventh of the 
entire number of students attending the University, and the Univer- 
sity receives from the State only $34,428.80, while the entire cost of 
maintaining the University is about one million dollars annually. 

233 



234 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Number of Scholarships. — The act creating State scholarships 
provided that State scholarships should be awarded annually for 
each assembly district in the State. At this time there are 150 
assembly districts, and this is the basis on which appointments are 
now made. Each scholarship is valid for four years, and as 150 
appointments are made each year, the State has 600 State scholars 
in Cornell University at all times. 

Hov\^ Awarded. — ^Appointments to State scholarships are made 
by the Commissioner of Education, upon the result of competitive 
examinations held for that purpose. Albany county has three 
assembly districts and is entitled to three State scholarships. The 
names of candidates who take the examination for this county are 
arranged in the order of their merit, which is determined by their 
standing in the examination. The first three on the list are assigned 
to the scholarships for Albany county, irrespective of the assembly 
districts in which they reside. The same course is pursued in 
assigning appointments to all other counties. No person can be 
considered in awarding these scholarships who did not attend the 
required competitive examination. 

Competitive Examinations. — These examinations are held on 
the first Saturday in June of each year at the county seat of each 
county in the State. The district superintendents and the city super- 
intendents jointly conduct the examination for their respective 
counties. These examinations are under the supervision of the 
Commissioner of Education, and the questions used in such exam- 
inations are prepared under his direction. The subjects in which 
candidates are examined are designated by the president of Cornell 
University. These may change from year to year, but the general 
scope of the examination for each year may be obtained by writing 
the Education Department for the annual circular issued from that 
office. 

Eligibility. — To be eligible to enter a competitive examination 
candidates must be at least sixteen years of age, must be residents 
of the State, and must have been in attendance upon some public 
school or academy of the State for at least six months during the 
year immediately preceding the date on which such competitive 
examination is held. Attendance upon an institution registered as 
an academy under the regulations of the University of the State of 
New York meets the requirements of the law. Candidates must 



STATE SCHOLARSHIPS 235 

attend examinations in the county in which they actually reside. 
Students of either sex are eligible to these scholarships. 

Entrance Examinations. — All candidates who receive appoint- 
ments, but who do not hold credentials to admit them to the Univer- 
sity, are required to take the regular entrance examinations at the 
University. A failure to take this examination or to obtain a stand- 
ing therein satisfactory to the University authorities forfeits all 
right to the scholarship. 

Vacancies. — If a vacancy occurs in a State scholarship, it is the 
duty of the president of the University to notify the Commissioner 
of Education of such vacancy. The Commissioner of Education 
should then assign to such vacant scholarship the person standing 
highest on the eligible list of candidates for the county to which such 
scholarship belongs. If there should be no person on the eligible 
list for such county, then the Commissioner of Education should 
appoint the person standing highest on the eligible list which is made 
up from all the counties of the State. The person receiving such 
appointment is entitled to the privileges of such scholarship for the 
remaining period of the four years for which it was granted. 

Scholarship Privileges. — The holder of a State scholarship is 
entitled to free instruction in any department of the University for 
a period of four years. 

Leave of Absence. — If a State scholar shows to the satisfaction 
of the president of the University that it is necessary for him to 
leave the University to earn fynds with which to meet his living 
expenses while attending the University, the president may, in his 
discretion, grant such leave of absence, and such State scholar will 
then be allowed six years from the date of entrance in the University 
in which to complete the course. 

IN OTHER COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES 

Number. — Five scholarships are awarded annually to each county 
for each of the assembly districts therein. A county, therefore, 
having four assembly districts would be entitled to receive twenty 
scholarships. The law further provides that at no time shall there 
be more than twenty scholarships established and maintained for 
each assembly district, and at no time shall there be more than three 
thousand such scholarships for the entire State. As there are one 
hundred fifty assembly districts, and each district is entitled to five 



236 ' NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

scholarships annually, and the scholarship law has been in existence 
four years, there have already been appointed for each of the assem- 
bly districts twenty State scholars, and three thousand such scholars 
have been appointed for the entire State. One-fourth of this num- 
ber leave the college annually now, as they have completed their 
courses, and their places are taken by the new scholars who are 
annually appointed. The State will therefore continue to have 3,000 
State scholars in attendance upon the colleges and universities of 
the State. This Hmitation of State scholarships does not apply to 
scholarships which may be created by revenues or income of trust 
funds, gifts, devise or bequests. 

Scholarship Fund. — A fund is created by -the Legislature known 
as the scholarship fund of the University of the State of New York. 
This fund shall consist of the following: 

a. All money- appropriated to such fund by the Legislature. 

b. All money which may hereafter be given by gift, grant, devise 
or bequest, for the payment of such scholarships, and all Income 
or revenue derived from any trust created for the same purpose. 
The Regents of the University, or the Commissioner of Education, 
may be the trustee to receive funds of this kind. 

How Scholarships Are Awarded. — Each year in the month of 
August the Commissioner of Education is required to prepare from 
the records of the Education Department a list of the names of all 
pupils of each of the counties of the State who become entitled to 
college entrance diplomas under Regents rules during the preceding 
school year. This list must also show the average standing of the 
pupils in the several subjects on which each of such diplomas was 

issued. 

The Commissioner of Education is required to appoint annually, 
in the month of August, for each county of the State those pupils 
residing therein who become entitled to college entrance diplomas 
during the preceding school year. Such appointments must be made 
in the order of the merit of such candidates as shown by the list 
prepared under the conditions stated in the above paragraph. 

The Commissioner of Education Is further required to make 
another list of the names of pupils on the lists for the several 
counties who were not appointed to scholarships In the county of 
their residence. The names of these pupils are arranged upon a 
State list In the order of their merit and determined upon their 
average standings on the several county lists. As unclaimed vacant 



STATE SCHOLARSHIPS 237 

scholarships occur in any county of the State such vacancy shall 
thereafter fee filled by appointment from this State list. 

Vacant Scholarships. — A pupil who is entitled to a scholarship 
and is notified thereof must accept the same within thirty days after 
being notified. The court has held that a student in attendance 
upon a high school, who is entitled to a college entrance diploma 
under Regents rules, is not thereby entitled to receive an appoint- 
ment to a scholarship, but that such student must make written 
application for a college entrance diploma within the time limit 
specified under Regents rules. 

The court refused to direct the Commissioner of Education to 
include in the list of persons entitled to scholarships the name of 
a student who had earned a college entrance diploma, but who had 
failed to make application therefor as required under Regents 
rules. (Carnes v. Finley, 98 Misc. 390.) 

Failure to file such acceptance vitiates the right to receive such 
scholarship. Failure to comply with the rules of the Regents for- 
feits a scholarship. A scholarship may also for proper cause be 
revoked and a vacancy thereby occur. When a vacancy occurs 
in a county the pupil from that county standing next highest on 
the list is entitled to be appointed to such vacancy. If the vacant 
receive such scholarship. Failure to comply with the rules of the 
Regents forfeits a scholarship. A scholarship may also for proper 
cause be revoked and a vacancy thereby occur. When a vacancy 
occurs in a county the pupil from that county standing next highest 
on the list is entitled to be appointed to such vacancy. If the vacant 
scholarship is not claimed by a resident of the county in which the 
vacancy occurs, or if there be no resident entitled to appointment in 
the county, the vacancy is filled by making appointment from the 
State list in the order in which the candidates are arranged thereon. 

Scholarship Certificate. — A pupil, notified of his right to a 
scholarship, who accepts the same, is entitled to receive from the 
Commissioner of Education a scholarship certificate setting forth 
such right. 

Revocation of Scholarship. — The Commissioner of Education 
is authorized to revoke a scholarship. After such scholarship is 
revoked the holder thereof is entitled to no further rights therein. 
A vacancy also exists which may be filled as provided .under the 
scholarship law. A scholarship may be revoked for failure to com- 



238 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

ply with Regents rules in respect to the use of such scholarships, for 
failure to observe rules, regulations or conditions prescribed by a 
college in relation to the students attending the same, or for suspen- 
sion or expulsion from college, or absence therefrom without proper 
leave. 

Rights Under Scholarship. — The holder of a scholarship is 
entitled to attend any college or university in the State approved by 
the Regents for a period of four years, and may pursue any course 
of instruction given in such college or university except professional 
instruction in law, medicine, dentistry, veterinary medicine, or 
theology. 

Each State^scholar is entitled to receive $100 each year for a 
period of four years, to aid him in the completion of a college edu- 
cation. This amount is paid in two equal payments of $50 each. 
One payment is made on the first day of October and the other on 
the first day of March. These payments are made upon vouchers, 
or evidence showing that the persons holding such scholarships are 
in attendance upon an approved college and complying with such 
other regulations as the Regents have prescribed. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

Explain fully the origin of State scholai^hips in Cornell University. How 
many scholarships are awarded each year? By whom are appointments to 
these scholarships made? Explain fully how they are made. Explain fully 
how the competitive examinations are conducted. Who are eligible to enter 
these examinations? Where must candidates attend examinations? What 
is the ruling in relation to State scholars taking entrance examinations at 
the University? Explain how vacancies are filled in the University. What 
privileges does a scholarship confer? By whom may a leave of absence be 
granted to a State scholar? For what purpose? 

How many scholarships are awarded annually in each county? What limi- 
tation is there placed upon the number of scholarships? Of what does the 
scholarship fund consist? Explain how scholarships are filled. When are 
appointments made? By whom? How may a scholarship be vacated? How 
are vacancies filled? What entitles one to a scholarship certificate? Who 
may revoke a scholarship? On M^hat ground may one be- revoked? What 
rights as to college attendance does a scholarship confer? As to funds? 



CHAPTER XXVIII 

STATE NORMAL INSTITUTIONS 

[Article 32] 

Historical Sketch. — There are ten State normal schools in the 
State and one State normal college. Their location and the dates 
on which they were established and opened are as follows : 

Estab- 

LOCATION 

State College for Teachers 

Brockport 

Buffalo , 

Cortland 

Fredonia 

Geneseo 

New Paltz 

Oneonta 

Oswego . 

Plattsburg 

Potsdam . , 

The Legislature of 1917 authorized the establishment of an addi- 
tional State normal school in Westchester county. The State Board 
of Regents may accept a site and a municipality in the county may 
donate such site. The building is not to be erected until all other 
normal schools in the State are put in proper physical condition. 

The first school at Albany was simply an experiment and was only 
temporarily established. It was made a permanent institution in 
1848. In 1890, this school was changed to the State Normal College 
and in 1914 to State College for Teachers. Since the establishment 
of these institutions about 30,000 students have been graduated 
therefrom. They are now attended by about 10,000 pupils annually 
and maintained at an annual expense of nearly one million dollars. 
The value of the property of these schools is more than $3,500,000. 

The Object. — The acts creating these schools state their estab- 
lishment to be " for the instruction and practice of teachers of 
common schools in the science of education and the art of teaching." 

239 



lished Ope 


ned 


1844 


[844 


1866 


[867 


1867 


[871 


1866 


[869 


1866 


[868 


1867 


[871 


^885 


886 


1887 ] 


889 


1863 ] 


863 


1889 ] 


890 


1866 ] 


869 



240 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

How Establisheed. — Normal schools are established by special 
act of the State Legislature. There is no general law providing 
for their creation. 

How Governed. — The Commissioner of Education has general 
supervision of these schools. Each school, however, has a local 
board, whose members are appointed for life by the Commissioner 
of Education. As vacancies occur, either by death or resignation, 
they are filled by appointment by the Commissioner of Education. 
The local board must consist of not less than three and not more 
than thirteen members. (The board of trustees of the State Col- 
lege for Teachers consists of five members.) The number on each 
board varies, ranging from six to thirteen. The present policy is 
to maintain boards of seven. Members of a local board can be 
removed by the joint action of the Commissioner of Education and 
the Chancellor of the University of the State of New York. A 
majority of the members of a local board constitutes a quorum for 
the transaction of business. 

Powers and Duties of Local Board. — i. The local board is re- 
quired to establish rules and regulations for the general government 
of the school under its direction subject to the approval of the Com- 
missioner of Education. 

2. The local board is required to make an annual report in such 
form and giving such information as the Commissioner of Education 
shall direct. This report is submitted to the State Legislature 
through the Commissioner of Education. 

3. Local boards are the custodians of the buildings and grounds 
of their respective schools and of all other property of the State 
pertaining 'thereto. 

4. Local boards are authorized to appoint special policemen to 
protect the buildings and grounds and to preserve peace. These 
officers have powe^- to arrest offenders. 

5. It is the duty of local boards to supply these schools with 
necessary equipments and supplies. 

6. Local boards may, with the approval of the Commissioner of 
Education, accept for the State money or property of any kind to 
be used for the general support of these schools as may be prescribed 
by the instrument making the gift. 

7. Local boards employ and contract with the teachers employed 
in their respective schools. 

8. A local board has power to dismiss pupils. 



STATE NORMAL INSTITUTIONS 24I 

Principal. — The principal is the chief executive officer for the 
board and has the immediate supervision of all work pertaining to 
the management of the school and the instruction given therein. 

Powers and Duties of Commissioner of Education. — The 
Commissioner of Education is directed by law to appoint members 
of. the local board, he determines the number of teachers to be 
employed and the amount of compensation to be paid them, he 
approves the appointment of teachers, and also prescribes the courses 
of study. 

He is also empowered to prescribe the conditions upon which 
pupils will be admitted to these schools, and to determine the num- 
ber which may be admitted to each institution. 

Admission of Pupils.— To be admitted to a normal school, 
candidates must be at least sixteen years of age and must receive 
an appointment from the district superintendent of the supervisory 
district or from the superintendent of schools of the city in which 
such candidates reside. Candidates must present a diploma of 
graduation from the four-year course prescribed by the Commis- 
sioner of Education for admission to normal schools and city train- 
ing schools under the provisions of section 551 of the Education 
Law. 

Candidates, twenty-one years of age, who have had two years 
of high school work, or its equivalent, and in addition thereto 
have taught two years, will be admitted to the normal school on 
the understanding that they must complete the high school course in 
addition to the professional course before they shall be graduated. 

Graduates of training classes who entered the class upon an aca- 
demic diploma and who have taught one year since' graduation from 
the training class may complete the professional course in the 
normal school in one year if they possess the required aptitude for 
training. 

Privileges of Pupils. — Residents of the State regularly ad- 
mitted to a normal school cannot be charged tuition and cannot 
be charged for the use of books or apparatus. Pupils, however, 
are chargeable for books lost by them or damaged while in their 
possession. 

Dismissal of Pupils. — The local board may dismiss pupils for 
disorderly or immoral conduct or for neglect or inability to perform 
their work, or for a failure to comply with the regulations of the 
school upon which they are in attendance. 
16 



242 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Non-Resident Pupils. — Pupils who are not residents of the 
State may be admitted to these schools upon paying such tuition as 
the Commissioner of Education shall prescribe, which is $20 per 
term. 

Indian Pupils. — The State Treasurer is authorized to pay on 
the warrant of the State Coi;nptroller to the Commissioner of Edu- 
cation such sum as may be appropriated for the support and educa- 
tion of Indian youth in the State normal institutions. 

These pupils must be selected by the Commissioner of Education 
from the several Indian tribes in the State so as to distribute such 
selections equitably among these tribes. They must not be under 
sixteen years of age, and they are not entitled to more than three 
years' education in such school. The local board is made the 
guardian of such pupils while they are in attendance upon such 
institution, and such board is authorized to pay the necessary 
expenses of such pupils, from the funds provided for such purpose. 

Courses of Study. — Each of the normal schools has a two- 
years' professional course. The course is practically the same in 
all the schools. Some also have a special kindergarten and primary 
course. These courses are prescribed by the Regents of the Uni- 
versity. Special courses in kindergarten, domestic art and science 
and other vocational courses are given in these schools. 

Diplomas. — The Commissioner of Education prepares diplo- 
mas, which are granted to those who complete a course of study in 
these institutions. These diplomas are signed by the Commissioner 
of Education, the chairman and secretary of the local board, and the 
principal of the school. State College for Teachers diplomas are 
signed by the Commissioner of Education, and the President of 
the college. Such diplomas entitle their holders to teach for life in 
the public schools of the State. They may be revoked by the Com- 
missioner of Education for cause. The diplomas show the course 
of study which was pursued. 

Application of Tuition. — Local boards could formerly expend 
the tuition received from any department of their respective schools 
for apparatus, furniture, repairs, insurance, improvements upon 
the grounds or buildings, or for ordinary current expenses. It is 
now paid into the State treasury but is appropriated by the Legis- 
lature to the schools which collected it. 

Local Authorities May Insure Normal School Property. — The 
authorities of each city or village in which a State normal school is 



STATE NORMAL INSTITUTIONS 243 

located may insure the real and personal property of such school 
when the State refuses to keep adequate insurance on such prop- 
erty. Such insurance must be in the name of the State, and any 
money obtained therefrom must be used to repair or replace the 
property damaged or destroyed. 

Application of Insurance Money. — Whenever money is 
realized from insurance of the property or buildings of normal 
schools, such money must be deposited by the company in which 
such property is insured in a bank designated by the State Comp- 
troller. It must be placed to the credit of the local board of such 
school and kept -as a separate fund. Such money may be imme- 
diately used by the local board of the school to which it belongs 
upon the approval of the Commissioner of Education, to repair or 
replace in whole or in part the property damaged or destroyed. 

Academic Departments. — In some normal schools, academic 
departments are maintained by the State for the benefit of the 
localities in which such normal schools are located. Children of 
school age residing within the bounds of such localities are entitled 
to attend such schools. This is done in consideration of certain 
privileges conferred upon such school by these localities at the 
time such normal schools were created. Non-resident pupils can- 
not lawfully be permitted to attend the academic departments of 
these schools. ' ' 

Removal of Teachers. — The principal and any teacher em- 
ployed in a normal school may be removed upon joint action of the 
local board and the Commissioner of Education. The initiatory 
steps in these proceedings should be taken by the local board. In 
June, 1880, Superintendent Gilmour demanded the resignation of 
Principal Hoose, of the Cortland normal school. Principal Hoose 
refused to resign. In July, Superintendent Gilmour withdrew his 
approval of the appointment of Principal Hoose and appointed, 
another principal, whom the local board would not approve. The 
case was taken to the courts, and in April, 1882, the Court of 
Appeals decided the case in favor of Principal Hoose and the local 
board, on the ground that joint action of the boa/d and Superin- 
tendent was necessary to remove, the principal, and that the Super- 
intendent did not possess the power of removal. 

The Court of Claims in 1884, awarded t)r. Hoose payment^^in 
full for his salary, except for the itme he was elsewhere employed, 



244 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

between the beginning of the litigation and the decision of the Court 
of Appeals. (People ex rel. Gilmour v. Hyde, 89 N. Y. 44.) 

Special Powers for Fredonia School. — The practice depart- 
ment of the Fredonia normal school is treated as a union free-school 
district. 

Jamaica School. — This school was established in 1893 Snd 
opened in 1897. It was transferred by chapter 524, Laws of 1905, 
to the control of New York city. 

RETIREMENT OF TEACHERS 

[Article 43a] 

General Statement. — The Legislature of 1910 enacted a civil 
service retirement law. It is the first law of this character enacted 
in the history of the State. It applies to teachers employed for a 
certain period of time in a college, university, school or institution 
maintained and supported by the State and to teachers in schools 
for the deaf and dumb and the blind receiving pupils whose in- 
struction and support are paid for by the State. It was more par- 
ticularly enacted, however, in the interests of the teachers employed 
in the State normal schools. Teachers are therefor the first of the 
civil employees of the State to receive recognition under a retire- 
ment fund. 

Who May Retire or be Retired. — A person who has taught 
in the aggregate thirty years either in this State or elsewhere and 
for ten years immediately preceding application for retirement 
taught in one of the State institutions above described must on his 
request be retired. Service in teachers' institutes may be counted 
the same as teaching. 

2. A teacher of like age and experience who does not make ap- 
plication for retirement may on the order of the Commissioner of 
Education be retired. 

3. A teacher who has taught ten years in one of these institutions 
and who has taught an aggregate period of twenty years and who 
has become physically or mentally incapacitated and such fact is 
certified by the board in charge of the institution in which he is 
teaching may on the order of the Commissioner of Education be 
retired. 

Retirement Certificate. — A teacher who is entitled to retire 
or to be retired under either of the first two provisions defined in 



STATE NORMAL INSTITUTIONS 245 

the preceding paragraph should execute an affidavit setting forth 
the number of years of employment, the places where employed and 
the salary received at the time. Such affidavit should be filed with 
the Commissioner of Education. The Commissioner of Education 
if satisfied that the affidavit is truthful should issue a certificate to 
such teacher to the effect that he has been retired from active 
service. 

If a teacher is retired on the order of the Commissioner of Edu- 
cation he should also issue to such person a retirement certificate. 

Amount to be Paid to Retired Teacher. — A teacher retired 
under this law is entitled to bfe paid one-half his salary at the time 
of retirement but the amount paid shall in no case exceed $i,ooo. 
In no case shall the amount be less than $300. 

Time of Payment. — The law provides that payment shall be 
made quarterly commencing with the first quarter after the date of 
the issuance of the retirement certificate. 

Substitute Teachers. — Before the enactment of the retirement 
law for teachers employed in State institutions about one dozen 
teachers had been retired in the State normal institutions. Some 
of these teachers were eighty years of age and had devoted their 
lives to the teaching service in the State. The retirement law could 
not be made retroactive to meet their cases. The education law was 
therefore amended by providing that any teacher who had been 
retired in any of these institutions and who had taught a period of 
time in the State and in these institutions to have entitled him to 
retirement under the retirement law, had such teacher been in the 
service after the enactment of such retirement law, might be ap- 
pointed as a substitute teacher in the position which such person 
last held in the service of the State and that the person thus ap- 
pointed as substitute teacher should thereafter serve in that position 
for the remainder of his life. The purpose of this act was to accord 
to these teachers the right to receive the same annual compensation 
which such teachers would be receiving were they eligible to retire- 
ment and legally retired under the retirement law. The law there- 
fore provided that these teachers should be entitled to receive two- 
thirds the salary they were receiving in the position when retired, 
if they were assigned to active work. If not assigned to active 
teaching in the institution such substitute teachers were to receive 
one-half of the salary received at the time of retirement, but in no 
case less than $300 or more than $1,000 annually. 



246 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

How many normal schools are there in the State? When was the first 
one established? Where? When Avas it made permanent? What change 
was made in this school in iStx>? In 1014? How many persons have been 
graduated from these institutions? What is the annual attendance? What 
does it cost annually to maintain them? What is the value of their property-? 
Wliat is the object of these institutions? How are tliey established? 

Who has general supervision of these schools? What local authority has 
supervision of these schools? How is the local board chosen? For what 
period? Who is the executive officer of the board? Of how many members 
does the local board consist ? How may members of this board be removed ? 
What is the board in charge of the State ♦College for Teachers called? Of 
how many members doe's it consist? What are the duties of the local board 
in relation to establishing regulations? In submitting reports to Legislature? 
•In caring for buildings and other property? In appointing special policemen? 
In supplying schools with equipments ? In accepting gifts made to the schools 
for the State? In employing teachers? In dismissing teachers? State fully 
the powers and duties of the Commissioner of Education. 

^^ ho may be admitted to these schools ? By whom are appointments made ? 
By whom approved? What certificates of proficiency are accepted? 

To what privileges are pupils entitled? Who may dismiss pupils? For 
what reasons? Upon what conditions are non-resident pupils admitted? 
Who are tion-resident pupils? What amount is the State Comptroller author- 
ized to pay each year for the support and education of Indian youth in these 
schools? How many of such youth may be educated from such fund? 
How are they chosen? -What must be their age? How manj' years may 
they attend these schools? Who is made guardian of these pupils? Wliat 
amount may be expended each year upon these pupils? 

What courses of study do these school have? Are these courses uniform? 
By whom are they prescribed? Who receive diplomas from these schools? 
B}' whom are such diplomas prepared? By whom are they signed? What 
privilege do such diplomas confer? For what may they be revoked? 

How may tuition money be expended? Where must money derived from 
insurance be deposited? What application may be made of such money? 
What are academic departments in these schools? How were they created? 
Who may attend these departments? Can non-resident pupils be admitted? 
How may a teacher be removed? Give details of the case relating to the 
removal of Principal Hoose, of Cortland. 

What was the first law authorizing the retirement of State civil employees 
enacted in this State? To Avhom does it apply? Name the various con- 
ditions under which such teachers maj^ retire or be retired. By whom is a 
retirement certificate issued? WTien? WTiat amount is to be paid a retired 
teacher? The maximum to a supervising official or a principal? To a 
teacher? The minimum amount? When is it paj'able? What are substitute 
teachers? By whom are they appointed? \Vhat compensation may they 
receive when employed? When not employed? 



CHAPTER XXIX 

teaciiicrs' training classes, tr.^'ing schools 

teachers' training classes 

[Article 31] 

Historical Sketch. — Training classes were organized in the 
academies as early as 1821. In 1S27 the Legislature increased the 
amount of tlie hterature fund, and one of the purposes for such 
increase as specified in the law was to " promote the training of 
teachers.*' In 1S34 an act was passed providing for the organiza- 
tion of Teachers' Training Classes. They were under the super- 
vision of the Board of Regents from that year until 1889, when their 
supervision was transferred by an act of the Legislature to the 
State Superintendent of Public Instruction. 

Object. — Teachers' Training Classes are organized to give in- 
struction in the science and practice of common-school teaching to 
persons who desire to become teachers in the public schools of the 
State. These teachers are trained generally for the rural schools. 

Institutions Which May Organize Them. — Academies and 
union free schools are the only institutions in which these training 
classes may be organized, and only such of these institutions as the 
Commissioner of Education designates. -So many of the old acad- 
emies have beea^merged with the public school system that these 
classes are now maintained in union free-school districts only. 

How Such Institutions are Designated. — The Commisssioner 
of Education has authority, by law, to adopt regulations by which 
institutions desiring the appointment to organize training classes 
must be governed. (As these regulations may be changed at any 
time by the Commissioner of Education they are not given in this 
work, but may be obtained from the University upon application. "> 
The regulations are submitted by him to the Board of Regents for 
approval. 

An institution desiring an appointment to instruct a class should 
obtain a blank application from the Commissioner of Education, 

247 



248 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

supply the information called for in such blank, and then file it in 
the State Department at Albany. This application, properly filled 
out, should be filed not later than May ist, and appointments made 
on such applications are for the school year beginning on the first 
day of August following. From the applications filed the Com- 
missioner of EducatioiijBelects those institutions which are the best 
equipped for the work and the selection of which will distribute 
such classes. throughout the supervisory districts of the State so as 
to give equal advantages, as far as possible, to the people of all 
parts of the State. The number of appointments which may be 
made for any year is a matter of discretion on the part of the 
Commissioner of Education, but cannot exceed 115. 

Number of Pupils in Class. — No class can legally be formed 
with a membership of less than ten or more than twenty-five. 

Period of Instruction. — A class cannot legally be organized 
for a shorter period than thirty-six weeks, and it is within the 
authority of the Commissioner of Education to require a longer 
period. Under this authority the Commissioner of Education re- 
quires the organization of a class to be for two terms of not less 
than eighteen nor more than twenty weeks each. The Commis- 
sioner has also established a regulation requiring the amount of 
instruction in these classes for each day to consist of five periods 
of forty-five minutes each in addition to the observation and prac- 
tice teaching required. 

Tuition. — No pupil admitted to these classes and remaining 
therein the period required under the regulations of the Commis- 
sioner of Education can lawfully be charged for such attendance. 
A non-resident pupil who is a member of a trainin^g class and who 
leaves such class within the prescribed period without the consent 
of the Commissioner of Education may be charged tuition by the 
school authorities of the district in which such training class is 
organized, at the rate charged non-resident pupils who are in at- 
tendance upon such school but who are not members of a training 
class. 

Compensation Allowed. — An institution niaintaining a training 
class of not less than ten pupils regularly organized and conform- 
ing to the regulations prescribed by the Commissioner of Education 
is entitled to receive $700 from the State. The teacher employed 
for training class instructor may also be reported for a teachers* 
quota and thus entitle the district to an additional $100. In case 



teachers' training classes, etc. 249 

a pupil has not been in attendance the required period, or a class 
has not be held for the full period of thirty-six weeks or there has 
been less than ten members in attendance upon such class, the Com- 
missioner of Education may, for reasons satisfactory to himself, 
excuse such default and allow the institution in which such class 
was instructed equitable compensation proportionate to the number 
of pupils and period of instruction for the time such pupil was in 
actual attendance upon such training class. » 

This money is paid by the State Comptroller on the certificate of 
the Commissioner of Education to the district entitled to receive it. 
The money is then the property of the district and may be used fof 
school purposes as the district directs, except that such money cannot 
be paid as extra compensation to a teacher or teachers who receive 
a fixed salary. 

Training Class Fund. — The amount of this fund is determined 
annually by the Legislature. The Legislature appropriated in 1916 
$90,000 from the free school fund for the support of these classes 
and training schools. Of this amount $61,342.50 was paid for 
maintenance of training classes and the balance of $28,657.50 to 
cities for support of training schools. 

Duties of District Superintendents. — District superintendents 
are directed by law to visit and inspect training classes, to advise 
and assist principals in the organization and management of such 
classes, to conduct examinations for such classes as directed by 
the Commissioner of Education and to issue certificates in the form 
prescribed by the Commissioner of Education to those members 
of classes who have met the requirements of the law and the regu- 
lations of the Commissioner of Education. 

Requirements for Admission. — To be eligible to be received in 
membership in a teachers' training class, an applicant must have 
completed the equivalent of at least three years' approved work in 
a high school. Announcement has been made that in 1918 the 
requirements for admission to such classes will be advanced to 
graduation from an approved four-year course. 

Training-class Certificates. — A training-class certificate issued 
between January i, 1896, and August i, 1905, is valid for three 
years and entitles its holder to teach in any public school, during its 
validity, in the commissioner district for which it is issued. LTpon 
its expiration it may be renewed for a period of five years wthout 
further examination. It must also be indorsed by any district su- 



250 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

perintendent in the State, when presented to him for that purpose. 
These certificates issued after August i, 1905, entitle their holders 
to teach in those schools only which do not maintain an academic 
department. A holder of a training class certificate who is also a 
high school graduate and who has taught successfully for two 
years since completing the training class course, may receive a 
form of training class certificate which will entitle her to teach in 
the grades of a school* which maintains an academic department. 
Upon their expiration they may be renewed for a period of five 
years, provided the holder thereof has taught successfully three of 
the five years for which the certificate was issued. 

Regulations for Classes. — To the Commissioner of Education 
is given the authority to establish regulations, for the instruction and 
management of training classes, to prescribe the course of study for 
such classes, "and to determine the conditions upon which pupils 
will be admitted to such classes. 

No person can receive a certificate who is under the age of 
eighteen years, and as pupils are required to be under instruction in 
a training class one year, candidates for membership in such classes 
must be at least seventeen years of age. (Complete regulations 
may be obtained upon application to the Commissioner of Educa^ 
tion.) 

CITY TRAINING SCHOOLS 
[Section 551, also article 31] 

Any city in the State, or any district of 5,000 or more population 
in the State, employing a superintendent of schools, may establish 
arid maintain schools or classes for the professional training and 
instruction of teachers for not less than two years. 

The law also provides that no person is eligible to membership in 
one of these training schools or classes who has not been graduated 
from a high school or academy having a three years' course of 
instruction approved by the Commissioner of Education, or from 
some other institution of equal or higher rank: The Commissioner 
of Education may prescribe higher qualifications and he has exer- 
cised this discretion by providing that all persons admitted to 
training schools shall have completed an approved four years' 
academic course. The course of study of such training schools or 
classes must also be approved by the Commissioner of Education. 

The Commissioner of Education is also authorized to apportion 
to each city maintaining a training school or class under the pro- 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 25 1 

visions of this law and the regulations which he prescribes the b'al-' 
ance of the annual appropriation for training classes and training 
schools after apportioning the training classes the amount to which 
they are entitled. This balance must be apportioned ratably ac- 
cording to the aggregate attendance of the pupils regularly admitted 
to such training schools. 

teachers' institutes ■> 

[Article 30] 

Origin. — The first teachers' institute in this State was held at 
Ithaca in April, 1843. It was in session for two weeks and was 
attended by twenty-eight teachers. The Superintendent of Tomp- 
kins county had charge of it and obtained assistants to conduct it. 
It received no aid from the State. The propriety of establishing 
this institute was decided upon in October, 1842, at the Tompkins 
County Teachers' Association. The work was successful and popu- 
lar, and other counties soon followed the same plan. In 1847 the 
Legislature appropriated $60 for the aid of each institute held in 
the State. As the Legislature makes no appropriation for institutes 
they have been discontinued. The conferences of teachers held by 
district superintendents supersedes the institute's work. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

How early wei^e training classes maintained in the academies? What 
significance has the year 1827? What is the object in organizing training 
classes? When was the first act creating them passed? Who had supervision 
of them? What change was made in 1889? In what institutions may they 
be organized? By whom are these institutions designated? Explain how 
-these Appointments are made? What restrictions are placed on the number 
of pupils which may be in a class? What period of instruction is required? 
What period for each day? Are members of these classes charged tuition? 
What exception is there to this rule? What compensation is allowed an 
institution for maintaining one of these classes? How is this money ob- 
tained? What appropriations are made for this work? What equitable 
allowance may be apportioned for maintaining a training class? What are 
the general duties of a district superintendent in relation to these classes? 
Explain fully the value of a training class certificate. By whom are regula- 
tions governing training classes prescribed? What is the minimum age limit 
for admission to these classes? Explain the provisions of section 551 of the 
Education Law relating to training schools and classes in cities and villages 
employing a superintendent. Explain the method of appropriating State 
funds for these purposes. 



CHAPTER XXX 

teachers' qualifications, certificates, contracts, powers 

and duties 

[Article 20] 

Who Are Legally Qualified to Teach. — No person is legally 
qualified to teach in a public school in any supervisory district who 
does not hold eithet a State certificate, a college graduate's certifi- 
cate, a normal school diploma, an equivalent certificate, a tempo- 
rary license, a school commissioner's certificate or a district super- 
intendent's certificate. To be legally qualified to teach in a city, or 
village of 5,000 population or more, a person must hold one of the 
first four certificates above named or a certificate issued by the 
school authorities of the city or village in which such person desires 
to contract. 

Age of Teachers. — No person can legally be licensed to teach 
in a public school of this State who is not at least eighteen years 
of age. 

State Certificates. — These certificates have been issued by 
either the State Superintendent of Public Instruction or the Corti- 
missioner of Education since 1875, upon examination only. Their 
holders are legally qualified to teach for life in the public schools 
of the State without further examination. Previous to 1875, Jhese 
certificates were issued by the State Superintendent upon recom- 
mendation. No examinations were required. Such certificates con- 
fer the same rights upon those holding them as State certificates 
issued since 1875. Candidates must pass the required examinations 
and must have taught successfully for three years, to be ehgible 
to receive one of these certificates. 

College Certificates, — A certificate, valid for three years in all 
schools, will be issued to any graduate of a college approved by 
the State Commissioner of Education, who shall have completed 
therein a course in education under the regulations of the State 

252 



TEACHERS QUALIFICATIONS, ETC. 253 

Education Department. On evidence of three years successful 
experience in teaching a permanent certificate will be issued. 
f A certificate, valid for two years, will be granted to a graduate 
of an approved course in an approved college. If during this term 
the holder shall pass an examination in psychology, history of 
education, the principles of education and methods of teaching, the 
certificate will be renewed for one year. This certificate entitles 
its holder to teach in high schools and in rural schools or in all 
schools except primary and grammar grades in cities and villages of 
5,cxx) or more. At the end of three years' successful experience in 
teaching, a college graduate certificate will be issued, valid for life, 
and in any school or department of a school in the State. 

Normal School Diplomas. — These diplomas are issued by the 
normal school authorities to students who have completed one of 
the prescribed courses of these schools. Such diplomas legally qual- 
ify those who hold them to teach for life in the public schools of 
the State without further examination. 

Uniform Certificates. — These certificates were issued by school 
commissioners under such regulations as the Commissioner of Edu- 
cation prescribed.* This class of certificates now in force are issued 
by district superintendents and are rural school renewable certifi- 
cates, training-class certificates, and special certificates known as 
drawing, kindergarten, vocal-music, elocution, commercial, manual 
training, physical training and domestic art or science. 

First Grade. — Such of these certificates as have already been 
issued are valid for either five years or ten years and upon the 
expiration thereof they may be renewed, without examination, by 
a district superintendent, for either five years or ten years, accord- 
ing to the period of time for which such certificates were originally 
issued. This renewal depends, in the case of five-year certificates, 
upon the holder thereof having taught three years during the life 
of the certificate and, in the case of the ten-year certificates, upon 
the holder thereof having taught at least five years during the life 
of such certificate. These certificates are valid in the supervisory 
district for which they are issued and upon indorsement by the 
superintendent having jurisdiction they become valid in any super- 
visory district of the State. 



* The regulations under which these certificates are issued may be obtained 
at any time from the Education Department. 



254 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Training Class. — These certificates are issued to those who 
complete one year's work in a training class under the supervision 
of the Education Department for three years and are renewable f(5^ 
five-year periods. 

Training School Certificates. — These certificates are issued 
for three years by city superintendents to those who complete a 
course in a training school. They are renewable for ten years 
without examination, and district superintendents are required to 
indorse them. 

Rural School Renewable Certificates. — These certificates are 
issued by district superintendents for a period of three years and 
are valid in school districts not maintaining academic departments. 
These certificates may be renewed by district superintendents for 
a period of ten years, provided the holder thereof has taught suc- 
cessfully for two of the three years for which the certificate was 
issued. 

Drawing Certificates. — These certificates are issued to special 
teachers of drawing. They entitle those holding them to teach 
drawing only. A person who holds a drawing certificate and a 
general certificate of any grade may teach drawing and do general 
teaching also. Drawing certificates are valid for three years, and 
may be renewed without examination for a period of five years in 
the same manner as first-grade certificates are renewed. 

Kindergarten Certificates. — The holders of these certificates 
are entitled to teach kindergarten only. The holder of a kinder- 
garten certificate, however, who also holds another certificate per- 
mitting general teaching, is not debarred from teaching under such 
other certificate. These certificates are valid for three years, and 
may be renewed for five years. 

Vocal-Music Certificates. — These certificates are issued with- 
out examination, are valid for three years, and may be renewed. 
A candidate to receive a certificate of this kind must show to the 
satisfaction of the Commissioner of Education that she has re- 
ceived sufficient professional training in vocal music and has had 
sufficient experience in teaching the subject, to be well qualified to 
receive such certificate and that she completed a high-school course 
or its equivalent. 

Other Certificates. — In addition to the above-named certifi- 
cates, an equivalent certificate may be issued to a person who has 
completed the equivalent of four years' academic training and two 



teachers' qualifications, etc. 255 

years' professional training, but who may not possess a diploma 
which is indorsable under Regents rules. 

There are also special certificates issued which authorize the 
holders thereof to teach elocution, domestic art, domestic science, 
physical training, manual training, stenography and typewriting, 
and commercial subjects. The requirement for one of these cer- 
tificates is the completion of a four years' academic course or its 
equivalent, and a two years' professional course in the special line 
which the- certificate covers. Vocational teachers' certificates are 
also issued under conditions specified in Regents rules. 

Academic Certificates. — These certificates are issued by dis- 
trict superintendents for a period of three years, ^are limited to 
schools approved by district superintendents and are not valid in 
schools which maintain an academic department. But one certifi- 
cate will be issued to the same person, and such certificate may be 
extended one year by eighteen credits earned in the examinations 
for State certificates or by a summer course, but may be indorsed 
by district superintendents. T6 receive such certificate a candidate 
must hold a Regents' academic diploma and must have completed 
a summer course at a normal school. 

General Certificates. — A State certificate, a college-graduate 
certificate, a normal-school diploma, a training-school certificate, 
a professional certificate, a training-class certificate and a first-grade 
certificate, may be regarded as general certificates to distinguish 
them from: special certificates. These general certificates state that 
their holders are properly qualified and are entitled to teach in the 
public schools. Such certificates do not restrict their holders to 
the teaching of any particular subject. A special certificate does 
so restrict, as, for instance, a drawing certificate entitles its holder 
to teach drawing only. The holder of any one of these general 
certificates may, tlierefore, teach any special subject, as drawing or 
kindergarten, without holding a special certificate. 

Temporary Licenses. — The Commissioner of Education may, 
in his discretion, issue a temporary license, valid in a school dis- 
trict, a supervisory district or a city for a period not to exceed one 
year, whenever in his judgment it is necessary or expedient to 
do so. 

Refusal to Issue Certificates. — A district superintendent may 
refuse to issue a certificate to a person who has passed the required 
examination, if a valid reason is assigned for such refusal. In 



256 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

cases of this kind, the aggrieved party may appeal to the Com- 
missioner of Education from the action of the superintendent in 
refusing to issue his certificate. If in the judgment of such com- 
missioner the reasons given by the superintendent are vahd, such 
superintendent will be sustained in his refusal to issue such certifi- 
cate, but if the Commissioner of Education does not consider the 
superintendent's reasons vahd, he will direct such superintendent 
to issue the certificate. Immoral character or lack of ability to 
govern or manage a school has been held to be a valid reason for 
withholding a certificate. 

Superintendent Not Required to Place Certain Names on cin 
Eligible List. — The board of education of New York city 
directed Superintendent Maxwell to place upon the eligible list for 
appointment as teachers of the graduating classes in elementary 
schools in all the boroughs except Brooklyn a large list of teachers 
holding licenses No. i and No. 2. Superintendent Maxwell 
brought an appeal to the Commissioner of Education praying for 
an order setting aside the resolution of the board of education 
which directed him to place the names in question upon the eligible 
lists. The legal right of Superintendent Maxwell to institute such 
appeal and the jurisdiction of the Commissioner of Education to 
hear the same was attacked in the courts by the board of education. 
The case went to the Court of Appeals and that body decided 
against the board of education on both of its contentions. The 
court held that Superintendent Maxwell could legally appeal to 
the Commissioner of Education for the determination of the ques- 
tions involved and that it was the duty of the Commissioner of 
Education to hear and determine such appeal. (People ex rel. 
Board of Education v. Finley, 211 N. Y. 51-58.) After hearing 
the case Commissioner Finley held that the action of the board 
was illegal and ordered that such action be vacated. (Maxwell v. 
Board of Education, 3 State Dept. Reports, 539.) 

Indorsement of Certificates by the Commissioner of Educa- 
tion. — The Commissioner of Education may in his discretion 
indorse State certificates issued in other States, or normal-school 
diplomas issued by the authorities of normal schools of other States. 
When such certificates are indorsed by the commissioner they have 
all the force and effect of State certificates and normal school 
diplomas issued, by the proper authorities of this State. 

Indorsement of Certificates by District Superintendents. — 



teachers' qualifications, etc. 257 

District superintendents are required under the regulations pre- 
scribed by the Commissioner of Education to indorse first grade, 
training-class and special certificates issued under the Department 
regulations, or to assign valid reasons for refusing to do so. When 
such certificates are indorsed by another superintendent they have 
the same value in the district of the superintendent who indorsed 
them as in the supervisory district for which they were originally 
issued. 

The Commissioner of Education holds that the holders of cer- 
tificates which district superintendents are required under his regu- 
lations to indorse are legally ^qualified to contract to teach in any 
supervisory district in the State. They may legally contract in 
such districts before their certificates have been indorsed by the 
superihtendent having jurisdiction. After making a contract in a 
supervisory district other than the one for which a certificate is 
valid, the holder of such certificate should present it for indorse- 
ment to the superintendent having jurisdiction over the district for 
which such contract was made. If a superintendent refuses to 
indorse such certificate, its holder may appeal from the action of 
the superintendent to the Commissioner of Education, who will 
determine upon the validity of the reasons assigned by the super- 
intendent in refusing his indorsement. (No. 4888.) 

Payment of Unqualified Teachers. — No part of the school 
moneys apportioned to a school district can be applied to the pay- 
ment of the salary of an unqualified teacher. Nor can the salary 
of an unqualified teacher be collected by a tax upon the district. 
Any member of a board of education who applies such money or 
who directs or consents to the use of such money contrary to these 
provisions, is guilty of a misdemeanor. Any fine imposed therefor 
must be for the benefit of the common schools of the district or 
town. 

The members of a board of education who knowingly employ an 
unqualified teacher are personally responsible to such teacliter for 
her salary. 

The mem'bers of a board of education who wilfully employ a 
teacher not legally qualified may also be removed from office by the 
Commissioner of Education. 

Revocation of Certificates. — There are two authorities by 
either of whom teachers' certificates may be revoked, namely, the 
17 



258 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Commissioner of Education and a district superintendent. The 
Commissioner of Education may revoke a certificate of any grade 
by whomsoever issued, for all reasons on which such action may 
"be legally taken. By the provisions of the consolidated school law 
of 1894, school commissioners were given authority to revoke cer- 
tificates on the ground of immoral conduct only and district super- 
intendents now possess this power. On this ground a district 
superintendent may revoke a State certificate, a .normal-school 
diploma, a college-graduates' certificate, or a certificate issued by 
any district superintendent in the State. 

Whenever charges have been preferred to a district superintend- 
ent against the moral character of a teacher, it is the 4uty of the 
superintendent to furnish such teacher a copy of these charges and 
also to notify the teacher of a time and place at which a hearing 
will be given thereon. At this hearing the evidence in support of 
such charges must be presented, after which the accused is entitled 
to present evidence to disprove such charges. The accused is also 
entitled to be represented by counsel. When a certificate issued 
by the Commissioner of Education or a normal-school diploma is 
revoked by a superintendent on these grounds, the superintendent 
should immediately file with the Commissioner of Education a notice 
of such action. 

A district superintendent cannot revoke a ^certificate for deficiency 
in scholarship or for inability to manage or govern a school. 
These are questions which the superintendent should have deter- 
mined before issuing a certificate. The issuance of the certificate 
presupposes that proper investigation has been made in regard to 
the candidate's qualifications, and that such qualifications have been 
found to be satisfactory to the superintendent. The only authority 
to revoke a certificate on this ground is the Commissioner of 
Education. 

There are two ways of disposing of an inefficient teacher. One 
way is to establish such inefficiency to the satisfaction of the Com- 
missioner of Education, upon direct appeal for that purpose in due 
form. The Commissioner of Education will then revoke the cer- 
tificate of such teacher. The second method is for the board of 
•education to dismiss the teacher. , Then, if the teacher appeals from 
the action of the board, the Commissioner of Education becomes 
the judge of the validity of the grounds upon which the board based 
its action. The charge of inefficiency must in this case, also, be 



TEACHERS QUALIFICATIONS, ETC. 259 

proved to the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Education. If 
proved, he will sustain the action of the board. 

A certificate should not be revoked for immoral conduct which 
occurred previous to the issuance of the certificate if such conduct 
was known to the official who issued the certificate at the time he 
issued it. 

Charges of immoral conduct against a teacher must be definite 
and specific so that the accused will know with just what acts he 
is charged. A superintendent has no power to place the holder of 
a certificate upon trial on general charges of immoral conduct. 

The education law provides that certificates may be revoked for 
the following specific causes: 

1. Failure to attend teachers' institute as required by law. 

2. Failure to complete an agreement to teach a term of school 
without assigning a valid reason. 

3. Immoral conduct. 

In cases which have come before the Commissioner of Education 
upon appeal it has been held that certificates may be revoked for 
a teacher inflicting upon a pupil unreasonable, unnecessary, and 
cruel punishment, and also for intemperance upon the part of the 
teacher. 

4. Wilful refusal to teach physiology and hygiene as required by 
law, ^ 

Superintendent Draper held that the severe penalty of revoking 
a certificate should not be imposed except for a cause sufficiently 
grave to justify a permanent prohibition of the right to teach. (No. 

3572.) 

In an appeal case decided by Superintendent Skinner the broad 
and reasonable principle was maintained htat the general conduct 
of a teacher should be such as to inspire the fullest confidence of 
parents, and that when the acts and general conduct of a teacher 
were such as to produce the opposite result, such teacher was unfit 
to be permitted to remain in the teaching service. (No. 4644.) 

The revocation of a certificate terminates any existing contract 
between the holder of such certificate and a board of education. 

Who May Contract. — Any person can- enter into contract to 
teach a public school who holds a legal certificate of qualification. 

Contracts with Minors. — A minor may contract v^ath a board 
of education to teach a public school. A minor making such con- 
tract must complete the term of contract, and for a failure to do 



26o NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

this without a valid reason, such minor's certificates may be revoked. 
Under the general law of contracts, a minor would not be responsi- 
ble to a board of trustees for any damage claimed by reason of 
such minor's failing to comply with the terms of his contract. 

Contracts with Married Women. — The domestic relations 
law gives married women the right to make contracts and to receive 
Compensation thereon. 

By Whom Employed. — Teachers must be employed by the 
board of education. A school district or town school meeting can- 
not direct what teachers shall be employed. This is a power to be 
exercised solely by the board of education. 

Employment of Relatives. — In a union free-school district or 
township no person can be employed by a board of education, who 
is related by blood or marriage to any member of the board, except 
by a two-thirds vote of such board, and such vote should be entered 
upon the proceedings of the board. 

Period of Employment. — A board of education cannot employ 
a teacher for a shorter period than ten weeks, except to fill out 
an unexpired term. Nor can a board of education contract with 
a teacher for more than one year in advance nor for a longer period 
of time than that for which such teacher's certificate of qualification 
is valid. All contracts must be for a specific time. A trustee can- 
not legally employ a teacher for " as long as her work is satis- 
factory." 

A teacher employed contrary to these provisions has no claim 
against the district for salary, but she may under certain circum- 
stances enforce the contract against those making such contract as 
individuals. 

Form of Contract. — Boards of education are required to make 
and deliver to each teacher employed a written contract. This con- 
tract must be signed by the members of the board or some person 
duly authorized by the board. 

This contract should show the agreement between the board and 
teacher in relation to the period of employment, the amount of 
compensation, and when the same shall be payable. It is also 
advisable to state in the contract whether the teacher is to be 
employed in a primary or grammar department, or to perform work 
along special lines, or to act as the principal. 

A verbal contract the terms of which can be proved is binding 
and can be enforced. It is advisable, however, for boards to issue 



teachers' qualifications, etc. 261 

written contracts and for teachers to insist on receiving them. The 
burden of establishing a verbal contract is generally on the teacher. 

The contract must be made by a majority of the board and at a 
meeting regularly held. The contract is not legal if the consent of 
the members of the board is obtained separately and not at a meet- 
ing properly convened. A contract made by one member of the 
board when duly authorized to act as the agent of the board is 
binding. 

When Compensation is Due. — Teachers can require boards to 
pay them as often at least as at the end of each calendar month of 
the term of employment. A contract cannot legally be made pro- 
viding that a teacher shall not be paid until the end of the term. A 
contract providing that a teacher shall not be paid as often as at the 
end of each calendar month is not binding, and such teacher can 
insist upon payments being made at the end of each calendar month. 
There is no legal objection to a contract which provides that a 
teacher shall be paid oftener than at the end of each month. 

(At the close of this chapter the foi*m of contract prepared by 
the Education Department is given. Any other good form may be 
used.) 

Orders on Supervisors and District Collector or Treasurer. — 
The law provides that boards may issue orders on the supervisor of 
the town and the treasurer of the board in payment of teachers' 
salaries. The law also makes it a misdemeanor for a board to issue 
an order on either of these officers unless there are sufficient funds 
in the hands of such officer to pay the same. Teachers are there- 
fore required under the law to accept such orders properly issued 
in payment of their salaries. A teacher is not, however, required 
to accept a check from a supervisor or treasurer. These officers are 
required to honor such orders by paying the money thereon. 

Payment When School is Closed. — Whenever school is closed 
by proper authorities during a term for which a teacher has been 
engaged and the teacher is thereby restrained or prevented from 
teaching, such teacher is entitled to full compensation for the time 
school is thus closed. Cases of this kind arise when a school is 
closed by the school authorities or the health authorities, owing to 
the prevalence of a contagious disease, or when the schoolhouse has 
been destroyed by fire or otherwise. Boards of education may 
direct that schools shall be closed for a day for funerals and other 
occasions, and in all such cases the teachers employed in such 



262 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

schools -are entitled to full compensation for such time. When a 
board refuses to pay a teacher for such time, the remedy for the 
teacher is to appeal in proper form to the Commissioner of Edu- 
cation, 

Dismissal o£ Teachers. — A teacher cannot be dismissed during- 
a term of employiAent except for neglect of duty, incapacity to 
teach, immoral conduct or other reasons which the Commissioner of 
Education would consider sufficient if brought before him upon 
appeal. 

Whenever a teacher is dismissed by a board without sufficient 
cause, he should show his willingness to complete his contract and 
should make all reasonable efforts to do so. Failing in this, he is 
bound to seek employment elsewhere in order to mitigate the dam- 
ages which may follow the breach of the contract. Under these 
circumstances a teacher would be entitled to full compensation for 
that portion of the term for which he was employed, but during 
which he did not teach owing to his being dismissed, or if he ob- 
tains employment elsewhere he is entitled to the difference in com- 
pensation. If a teacher acquiesces in the action of a board in 
dismissing him, he is not entitled to compensation for the portion 
of the term which he failed to teach, on account of such dismissal. 

A board may dismiss a teacher without cause upon paying such 
teacher full compensation for the whole period for which such 
teacher was employed. 

The teacher's remedy in these cases is to be found either in the 
courts or in an appeal to the Commissioner of Education. The lat- 
ter is preferable. The appeal should be for a reinstatement in the 
position from which the teacher was dismissed and for the payment 
of salary for the time the teachef was deprived from teaching. 

Teacher's Absence to Become a Mother Not Sufficient Ground 
for Dismissal. — Several married women who are teachers in New 
York city were absent from duty for various periods to give birth 
to children. Charges were preferred against these teachers for 
neglect of duty. The formality of trials before the board of edu- 
cation was observed, the charges sustained and the teachers removed. 
Appeals were brought to the Commissioner of Education and that 
officer reversed the board of education in its action; held that the 
teachers were improperly removed and directed the board of edu- 
cation to reinstate such teachers. In determining one of these cases 
Commissioner Finley stated the following : 



teachers' qualifications, etc. 263 

Married women teachers under the rules and practice of the 
board may be, and are, employed. Women teachers, under the 
decision of the Court of Appeals, may not be dismissed on account 
of marriage after entering the service. The question now asked is : 
May the board dismiss a married woman teacher for that which is 
the lawful, natural consequence of marriage and its social sanc- 
tion ? Such answer as the highest court gives to this question on its 
legal merits, is to be found in the following quotation from the 
dissenting opinion of the chief justice of the Court of Appeals in 
this very case: " Maternity requiring occasional absences at periods 
of childbirth is a natural consequence of the employment of poten- 
tial mothers as teachers. If the Legislature had regarded this con- 
sequence as detrimental to the welfare of the schools, it would 
certainly have guarded against it by a prohibitory enactment. We 
find no such prohibition in the law or in any duly authorized rule or 
regulation of the board of education adopted pursuant to law. 
* * * The reasons for cind against the employment of young 
mothers as public school teachers, set out in this record in the 
majority and minority reports of the committee on elementary 
schools of the board of education, are appropriate for the consid- 
eration of the law-making power, but do not concern the courts. 
The question which we are called upon to decide in this proceeding 
is whether the specific accusation upon which the relator has been 
dismissed from her position, to wit, ' absence for the purpose of 
bearing a child,' constitutes neglect of duty -within the meaning 
of section 1093 of the Greater New York Charter. I agree with 
the learned judge who heard the case at the ''Special Term (Mr. 
Justice Seabury), that it does not." (People ex rel. Peixotto v. 
Board of Education, 212 N. Y. 463 ; Matter of Peixotto, 4 State 
Dept. Reports, 596.) 

Dismissal for Concealment of Facts. — Where a teacher con- 
ceals a fact for the purpose of deceiving a board of education and 
the knowledge of such fact would have prevented her employment, 
such action on the part of a teacher is sufficient ground for dis- 
missal. Where a rule of the board of education prohibited the 
employment of married women as teachers in the schools and a 
woman otherwise eligible to appointment but is married, purposely 
fails to disclose such fact because it would prevent her appointment, 
and accepts an appointment, is guilty of gross misconduct and may 
be dismissed. (Matter of Artman, 4 State Dept. Reports, 627.) 



264 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Dismissal for Marrying. — The Commissioner of Education has 
held that where a teacher makes a contract with the Board of Edu- 
cation for the year and such contract contains a provision to the 
effect that if the teacher married during the year, the contract 
should terminate, that the contract is valid and binding. This con- 
tract was made under an ordinance enacted by the council of the 
city pursuant to a law conferring that power upon the council. This 
teacher married during the year, but concealed this fact from the 
board of education. She continued to be known during the entire 
year under her maiden name. She signed the pay roll and received 
her salary monthly under such name. Later the facts in the 
case became known and charges were preferred against her and 
she was dismissed from the service. On an appeal to the Com- 
missioner of Education, that officer held that the regulation was 
made under due authority of law, that the teacher voluntarily en- 
tered into a contract containing a special provision that such con- 
tract should be terminated in case she did marry. The Commis- 
sioner of Education declined to reinstate her and held that the 
school authorities acted wholly within their powers. 

This case must be distinguished from the mother-teacher cases 
in New York city and other cases in that city. The teachers in 
New York city have had permanent tenure for years and the 
charter of the city specified four grounds upon which teachers 
might be dismissed, marrying during her employment as teacher 
was not enumerated as one of the four grounds of dismissal in 
New York city. 

Record of Attendance. — It is the duty of teachers to keep a 
record of attendance of all pupils in the school register provided 
for that purpose. This record must be kept as required under 
the directions given in the register which is prepared under the 
supervision of the Commissioner of Education. It is important 
that these records shall be kept accurately, as they form the basis 
for apportioning part of the State school moneys and are also 
important in connection with the enforcement of the compulsory- 
attendance law. 

Teachers are responsible for the safe-keeping of these records 
and should deliver them upon the close of their term of engagement 
to the clerk of the district or of the town board of education. , 

Verification of Records. — Teachers are required to make affi- 
davit to the correctness of the register kept by them. This affidavit 



teachers' qualifications, etc. 265 

may be taken by the district clerk and without charge. A teacher 
is not entitled to receive pay for any time taught until affidavit is 
made to the correctness of the register. 

Rules and Regulations for Teachers. — A board may prescribe 
general rules for the management of the school. When such rules 
have been adopted, it is the duty of teachers to enforce them, and 
so far as they affect the teachers themselves to comply with them. 
The members of a board have no authority to enter the school-room 
to direct any of the work in progress or to direct the method of 
enforcing the rules of the board. This power rests solely with the 
teacher. 

School Hours. — The school law does not define the hours that 
shall be devoted to school work. Custom has fixed the hours from 
9 A. M. to 12 M. and from i p, m. to 4 p. m. An intermission of ten 
or fifteen minutes is given each half-day session. The board of 
trustees of a district may, however, designate other hours during 
which the school shall be in session. If these hours are reasonable, 
it is the duty of teachers to conduct school during the hours desig- 
nated. If unreasonable hours are designated by a board, the Com- 
missioner of Education may, upon appeal in due form, modify the 
hours fixed by such board. 

Closing School. — A teacher has no authority to close school on 
any school day without the consent of the board. A teacher who 
does close school on a school day without such consent is guilty of a 
breach of contract, and may be dismissed by the board. The con- 
sent -of a board is necessary in order to close school on a legal 
holiday on which school may be in session, or a general election day, 
or for the purpose of attending a teachers' conference, as required 
by law. 

Janitor Work. — Neither teacher nor pupil can be compelled 
to do the janitor work of the school building. If the contract be- 
tween the teacher and the board provides that the teacher shall 
perform this work, then it becomes the duty of the teacher to do 
it upon the ground that she has consented to do so by special agree- 
ment in her contract. A teacher who voluntarily does this work is 
not entitled to compensation for performing it. 

Enforcement of Payments. — A teacher may bring an action in 
court for salary due him which has not been paid. This method is 
expensive and requires more time than teachers can generally give 
for the adjustment of such cases. The most inexpensive way and 



266 * NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

the method by which adjustment can be reached in the shortest 
period of time is to appeal in due form to the Commissioner of 
Education, who has power to direct such payments and to enforce 
his decision. 

Wearing Religious Garb. — There is no statute law in this 
State regulating the dress which shall be worn by teachers. The 
general influence upon the school system of teachers wearing a 
religious garb has been brought by appeal before the State Depart- 
ment in two cases. In March, 1887, on an appeal from the action 
of the board of education oi Suspension Bridge, Superintendent 
Draper ruled as follows : 

" The wearing of an unusual garb, worn exclusively by members of one 
religious sect and for the purpose of indicating membership in that sect by 
the teachers in a public school, constituted a sectarian ^influence, which ought 
not to be persisted in. The same may be" said of the pupils addressing the 
teachers as ' Sister Mary,' ' Sister Martha,' etc. The conclusion is irresistible 
that these things may constitute a much stronger sectarian or denominational 
influence over the minds of children than the repetition of the Lord's Prayer 
or the reading of the scriptures at the opening of the schools, and yet these 
things have been prohibited whenever objection has been offered by the rul- 
ings of this Department from the earliest days, because of the purpose 
enshrined in the hearts of the people and imbedded in the fundamental law 
of the State, that the public school system shall"1)e kept altogether free from 
matters not essential to its primary purpose and dangerous to its harmony 
and efficiency." (D. 3520.) 

In deciding an appeal from the action of the Board of Education 
of West Troy School District (now Watervliet), involving the same 
point, Superintendent Skinner held as follows : 

I therefore concur in the opinion of my predecessor in office, viz., that the 
teachers in the public schools of the State ought not to wear the distinctive 
garb of any religious denomination, order, sect, or society, but ought to dress 
in the usual costume worn by men and women generally; and that any other 
costume or usage is inimical to the best educational interests of the locality 
and should be discontinued by direction of the local school authorities whose 
duty it is to so administer the trusts reposed in them as to bring about the 
very best results with the least irritation, and in harmony with the spirit of 
the section of the organic law herein quoted. 

The school best does this which avoids any reference directly or indirectly 
to any particular denomination, sect, or order, both in the construction of the 
buildings used for school purposes and in the dress worn by the teachjsrs 
employed therein. To those not satisfied with this complete and actual 
severance of secular and religious instruction, the private school is open. 

I also decide that it is the duty of the respondents to require the teachers 



teachers' qualifications, etc. 267 

employed by them to discontinue the use in the public school room of the 
distinguishing dress or garb of the religious order to which they belong. 
(D. 4516.) 

On May 15, 1897, Superintendent Skinner directed the Board of 
Education of Watervliet to notify and require all teachers employed 
in that city and wearing a religious garb to discontinue the use of 
such garb. The board was also directed, in case any such teacher 
should refuse or fail to comply with such requirement, to dismiss 
such teachers from employment in the public schools of the city of 
Watervliet. An order was also issued by the State Superintendent 
prohibiting the County Treasurer from paying the money appor- 
tioned to this city until directed to do so by the Superintendent. 
(D. 4546.) 

The Court of Appeals held that the decision of the Stat^ Super- 
intendent on this question was in effect a regulation which he was 
authorized to make and that the prohibitive order was in accord 
with the public policy of the State as declared in section 4, article 
9 of the Constitutipn. (184 N. Y. 421.) 

When Teacher's Illness Prevents Teaching. — Whenever a 
teacher under contract is unable to teach by reason of illness, sucH 
teacher should report the fact of such illness to the board. These 
officers may, if they desire, employ a substitute teacher during the 
illness of the regular teacher. Such regular teacher has no voice 
in determining who the substitute teacher shall be. This is a ques- 
tion to be determined solely by the board. If the illness of a teacher 
is continued for a long period, and there is not reasonable hope of 
sufficient recovery to enable such teacher to resume teaching, the 
board may inform such teacher that the contract has been declared 
void by her inability t6 perform her part of it. The board may 
then employ another teacher, and if the teacher dismissed feels 
aggrieved, she may appeal from the action of the board to the 
Commissioner of Education. 

Authority Over Pupil. — There is no provision in the education 
law defining the authority which a teacher has over the pupils under 
his charge. The decisions of the courts and the rulings of the 
Commissioner of Education are, that the authority of the teacher 
over pupils is the same as that of a parent over a child, or as it is 
usually expressed, that a teacher stands in loco parentis to his pupils. 
The authority of the teacher begins at the time the pupil arrives 



268 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

upon the school grounds, extends to the close of school, and con- 
tinues until the pupil has left the school grounds. Cases may be 
cited in which the courts have held that the authority of the teacher 
extends beyond these limits, and that the pupil is accountable to the 
teacher for his conduct on the way to and returning from school, 
and even elsewhere, when such conduct has a direct bearing upon 
the discipline and general welfare of the school. These are not, 
however, recent decisions, and are not safe guides for teachers of 
the present time. A modem view of courts and of departments 
having judicial powers is to restrict the authority of the teacher 
over the pupil to the time between the arrival of the pupil upon the 
school grounds and his departure therefrom. The superintendents 
of this State and the Commissioner of Education have taken this 
view. 

Superintendent Draper held that the authority of the teacher was 
not absolute during the noon recess, and that a pupil possesses a 
legal right to leave the school grounds during the noon recess with 
the consent' of his parents. (D. 3698.) The right of a teacher to 
detain a pupil after school -hours is questionable. Where a parent 
objects to such detention, a teacher should not insist upon it. 

The authority of the teacher, however, is restricted by the rules 
and regulations of a board of education or a board of trustees. 
Where a board, of education or a board of trustees has prescribed 
regulations to govern the discipline of the school it is the duty of 
teachers to keep within the bounds of such regulations. 

Employment of Teachers in Cities and Districts of 5,000 
Population. — On January i, 1897, the provisions of chapter 1031 
of the Laws of 1895 went into operation. . These provisions are 
now incorporated in section 551 of the Education Law and relate to 
primary and grammar school teachers, but do not apply to teachers 
of any other grade. Teachers who were employed under a valid 
contract at the time this law went into operation may be continued 
in the service, even if they do not possess the qualifications pre- 
scribed by this law. But all teachers who have been employed 
since January i, 1897, or who shall hereafter be employed in any 
primary or grammar school in a city or district of 5,000 or more in 
this State authorized to employ a superintendent of schools must 
possess one of the three following qualifications : 

First. — Such teacher must hold a diploma issued by one of the 
normal schools of this State or a life State certificate issued by a 



teachers' qualifications, etc. 269 

State Superintendent of Public Instruction or by the Commissioner 
of Education. 

Second. — Such teacher must have had at least three years' experi- 
ence in teaching and must possess a certificate issued by the proper 
local authorities. 

Third. — Such teacher must have graduated from a high school 
or academy, or some other institution of equal or higher rank, 
having a course of study of at least three years, which is approved 
by the Commissioner of Education. Such teacher must also have 
completed subsequent to such graduation a course of not less than 
two years in a school or class for the professional training of teach- 
ers, and must hold a certificate issued by the proper local authorities. 
Such professional course must also be approved by the Commis- 
sioner of Education. These requirements now apply to districts of 
5,000 population or more. 

Suspension of Pupils. — There is no provision of law defining 
definitely the right to suspend a pupil from attendance upon school. 
This subject has been a question for the judicial consideration of 
State superintendents and of the courts. The present compulsory 
education act has so modified this question as to change materially 
former rulings relating thereto. We shall not therefore discuss 
these former rulings, but shall consider the question in its present 
aspect. 

The board of education of a district or city is the proper authority 
to suspend pupils. A teacher does not possess this authority. A 
teacher may, for proper reasons, dismiss a pupil for the day, but 
not for a longer period. When a pupil is dismissed for a day, the 
teacher should at the close of school on such day report the facts in 
the case to the board. A board has the power to prescribe regula- 
tions for the government of the schools under their management, 
and such board may therefore prescribe regulations governing the 
suspension of pupils. If in such rules a board designates specific 
offenses for which a pupil may be suspended, and such rules also 
provide that for such offenses a teacher may suspend a pupil, the 
teacher has the power to enforce such rules and suspend the 
offender. State Superintendent Skinner held that pupils between 
the ages of eight and sixteen years who are required to attend upon 
instruction cannot be suspended from a public school for a longer 
period than ten days, unless the trustees provide a place at which 



270 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

such pupil may receive instruction equivalent to that required under 
the compulsory education act. 

Public opinion supports the theory that schools are established 
for the purpose of educating children, and that for grave causes 
only will school authorities be warranted in denying them the priv- 
ilege of attendance thereon. 

Expulsion of Pupils. — A board of education is the proper au- 
thority to expel a pupil from attendance upon a public school. A 
teacher does not possess this authority. When a pupil is lawfully 
expelled from a public school, and it is found that he is not receiv- 
ing equivalent instruction elsewhere, he is to be proceeded against 
as an ungovernable child and committed to a truant school as pro- 
vided in the compulsory attendance law. 

A pupil having a contagious disease is not in a proper physical 
condition to be required to attend upon instruction, and may, during 
the continuance of such disease, be denied school privileges. To 
permit such pupil to continue in attendance upon .school would 
expose other pupils to the dangers of such disease. 

Incorrigible pupils and pupils whose moral senses are so depraved 
that their association with other pupils would contaminate such 
pupils may be expelled from public schools. If such pupils are 
between eight and sixteen years of age and are required to attend 
upon instruction under the compulsory attendance act, they should 
be proceeded against as disorderly persons. 

Corporal Punishment. — There is no direct statute enactment 
regulating the right of a teacher to inflict corporal punishment. 
The Penal Law provides that it shall not be unlawful for any 
parent, guardian, master, teacher, or the authorized agent of a 
parent, in the exercise of a lawful authority, to restrain or correct 
his child, ward, apprentice, or scholar, provided the force or violence 
used is reasonable in manner and moderate in degree. 

Under the provisions of the Education Law, a board of education 
of a union free-school district or of a town possesses the authority 
to prescribe rules and regulations for the government of a school. 
When a board of education adopts a regulation providing that cor- 
poral punishment shall not be inflicted, a teacher has no legal 
authority to resort to that mode of punishment. If a board of 
education should adopt a regulation of this kind, and a teacher, in 
violation thereof, should inflict corporal punishment upon a pupil, 



TEACHERS QUALIFICATIONS, ETC. 27I 

such teacher would be subject to removal in the discretion of school 
authorities. 

In the absence of a regulation of this kind having been adopted 
by a board, a teacher may, under the protection of the Penal Law, 
inflict corporal punishment, providing such punishment is reasonable 
in manner and moderate in degree. In inflicting this mode of pun- 
ishment, a teacher should give full consideration to the gravity of 
the offense, the general effect of such offense upon the school, the 
temperament and the other physical conditions of the pupil. Cases 
of school discipline are rare in which teachers should finally resort 
to this extreme if not barbarous mode of punishment. 

Control of School Papers, Athletics, etc. — It is within the 
legal power of school authorities to control the management and 
pubHcation of papers published by the pupils of a school as a school 
paper. Commissioner Draper held in September, 1904, in the 
Monticello case, that a publication standing for a school and appeal- 
ing to, the constituency of that school on that ground is 'not a private 
or personal affair but a public affair, and as such is subject to the 
school authority of the district which it represents. The Commis- 
sioner also sustained the principal and the board of education in 
suspending a pupil in charge of a school paper who refused to be 
governed by the rules prescribed by the school authorities to govern 
the management of such paper. (See decision 5142 — Report for 
1905.) School authorities undoubtedly possess the same super- 
vision over school organizations of a literary character or over those 
for the purpose of promoting athletics. ' 

Constitutional Oath of Teachers. — Chapter 574, laws of 1917, 
requires every employee of the State, or any of its civil divisions, 
to take and file a constitutional oath. The language of the oath is 
so broad that it includes teachers, superintendents and other em- 
ployees of the school system. The law provides that all employees 
of the State and each of its civil divisions, except the labor class, 
shall talve and file such oath within thirty days after the act took 
effect. Failure of such employee to take and file such oath termi- 
nates his' employment until such oath shall be taken and filed accord- 
ing to law. This law became effective May 19, 191 7. All teachers 
and superintendents therefore who have not taken the constitu- 
tional oath should take it at once and such oath should be filed with 
the clerk of the board of education. 

Provisions of Military Law Applicable to Teachers. — There 

1 



2/2 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

are certain provisions of the military law relating to officers or 
employees of the State, or of a municipal corporation or of any 
other political subdivision, who are members of the National Guard 
or Naval Militia, or who enter, or obligate themselves to enter, the 
federal military, naval or marine service, or who are required by 
draft or conscription to enter, such service, or who hereafter enter 
such federal service as prescribed in the law, which apply to teach- 
ers and supervisory school officers. A teacher or superintendent 
who does enter such service shall not be required to suffer a loss or 
diminution of vacation or holiday privileges or be prejudiced by 
reason of such absence with reference to promotion or continuation 
in office or employment or reappointment to office. Such teacher or 
superintendent who hereafter voluntarily enters the federal naval or 
military or marine service must have the consent of the board of 
education of the city, town or union free-school district in which 
such teacher is employed in order to obtain the benefits of the act. 
While such teacher or superintendent is in the service and therefore 
absent he shall not be deprived of any of his privileges as such 
officer or employee because of his absence, and such teacher or 
superintendent shall be entitled to receive the excess of his salary 
over the saalry which he receives from the United States govern- 
ment, and in no case shall the amount paid to such teacher or super- 
intendent 5e less than $25 a month in addition to what he receives 
from the United States government. If any such teacher or super- 
intendent hereafter employed in a city, town or union free-school 
district does hereafter enlist as a member of the National Guard, or 
Naval Militia, or volunteer in the federal military, naval or marine 
service without the consent of the Governor he shall not be entitled 
to receive any portion of his salary as teacher or superintendei)t. 
Men who come within the classes specified in the act and who are 
drafted into military service are entitled to all the benefits of the 
act without the consent of the board of education or Governor. 

FIRE DRILL 

[Article 28] 

Duty of Principal, etc. — Each principal or other person in 
charge of a public or private school or other educational institution, 
having more than 100 pupils, or maintained in a building two or 
more stories high, is required to instruct and train such pupils by 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 273 

means of drills, so that in any sudden emergency these pupils may 
be able to leave the school building in the shortest possible time and 
without confusion or panic. These drills or dismissals must be 
held as often as at least once each month. 

Penalty. — Any principal or other person failing to perform 
the duty required in above paragraph is guilty of a misdemeanor, 
punishable at the discretion of the court by a fine not exceeding $50. 
Such fine must be paid to the pension fund of the local fire depart- 
ment where there is such a fund. 

Duty of Board of Education. — The board of education of any 
city, district or town to which this act applies, or any other body 
having control of the schools to which this act applies, must have 
a copy of the act relating to fire drills printed in a manual or hand- 
book prepared for the guidance of teachers. 

TEACHER'S CONTRACT 

I of , county of , a duly 

qualified teacher, hereby contract with the board of education of District 

No , town of , county of , to teach in 

the public school of said district [or town] for the term of consecu- 
tive weeks, commencing i , at a weekly compensation 

of dollars and cents, payable at the end of each thirty days 

during the term of such employment. 

And the board of education of said district [or town] hereby contracts 
to employ said teacher for said period at the said rate of compensation, 
payable at the times herein stated. 

[Insert retirement fund.] 

Said board of education reserves the right to provide for a vacation or 
vacations of not more than weeks in the aggregate during said term. 

Dated , i 

, Teacher. 

Board of Education of 

By 



Chairman. 

This contract should be executed in duplicate and one copy thereof giveit 
to the teacher and one retained by the board. 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 

What certificate must a teacher hold to be qualified to teach in a super- 
visory district? In a city? How old must a person be before being eligible 
to receive a teachers' certificate? How are State certificates issued? What 



274 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Tights do they confer? Explain the difference between those issued previous 
to 1875 and those issued since that d^te. What are college graduates' certifi- 
cates? What rights do they confer? Who are eligible to receive them? 
What are normal school diplomas? What rights do they confer? What are 
commissioners' uniform certificates? Name the certificates issued under the 
uniform system? ' 

For what period were first grade certificates issued? For how long may 
they be renewed? Who are eligible to receive a training class certificate? 
Explain their value. Explain the value of drawing certificates. When may 
a drawing teacher teach drawing and do general teaching also? Explain the 
value of kindergarten certificates. Vocal music certificates. Elementary and 
academic certificates. When may a kindergarten teacher teach kindergarten 
:and do general teaching also? A music teacher teach vocal music and do 
other teaching also? By .whom may temporary licenses be issued? For 
how long? 

Are superintendents required to issue certificates to candidates who have 
passed the required examination? What are valid reasons for refusing to 
do so? What remedy has the aggrieved party? When may a superintendent 
refuse to place names upon an eligible list? What certificates of qualification 
may the Commissioner of Education indorse? What is the effect of such 
indorsement? What certificates are superintendents required to indorse? 
When may a superintendent withhold his indorsement? What is the effect 
of such indorsement? What is the ruling of the Commissioner of Education 
in relation to the right of a teacher to contract who holds a certificate subject 
to indorseiftent ? What is the remedy for a person holding such certificate 
when a superintendent refuses to indorse it? What moneys cannot be 
applied toward the payment of an unqualified teacher? If a trustee appro- 
priates these moneys for the payment of an unqualified teacher, what is the 
penalty? Who are responsible to such teachers, when employed, for their 
salaries? What is the penalty for wilfully employing an unqualified teacher? 

What authorities may revoke a teacher's certificate ? What certificates may 
the Commissioner of Education revoke? A district superintendent? Upon 
■what grounds may the Commissioner of Education revoke a certificate? For 
what one cause may a district superintendent revoke k certificate? What is 
the duty of a district superintendent when charges against the moral char- 
acter of a teacher have been presented to him? To what rights is a teacher 
thus charged entitled at a hearing? Why cannot a district superintendent 
revoke a certificate for deficiency in scholarship or for inability to govern or 
manage a school? Who is the only authority to revoke a certificate upon 
these grounds ? Explain fully each of two ways of disposing of an inefficient 
teacher. 

Can a certificate be revoked for immoral conduct previous to the date of 
issuance of such certificate, and when such conduct was known to the official 
at the time he issued such certificate? What must be the character of charges 
preferred against a teacher? Can a teacher be placed on trial for general 
(Charges of immoral conduct? For what three causes does the education 
law provide teachers' certificates may be revoked? For what causes have 
State Superintendents held certificates may be revoked? What did Superin- 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 2/5 

tendeat Draper hold in relation to revoking a teacher's certificate? What 
effect does the revocation of a teacher's certificate have upon an existing 
contract ? 

Who may contract to teach? May a minor contract? Is a minor required 
to complete a term for which contract has been made? Under what penalty? 
Is a minor subject to suit for damages for failing to complete a contract? 
May married women contract? 

By whom are teachers employed? Can a district meeting direct what 
teachers shall be employed? When may a town board of education employ 
a relative? Of a union free-school district? What is the shortest period 
for which a trustee may employ a teacher ? What is the limitation as to the 
period of time for which a teacher may contract? May a trustee employ a 
teacher for "as long as her work is satisfactory?" What remedy has a 
teacher employed contrary to the above provisions? 

What contract should be given to each teacher? By whom should it be 
signed? What essential facts should such contract contain? Is a verbal 
contract binding? Must a contract be made at a meeting of a board? When 
is a contract made by one member of a board of two or more trustees bind- 
ing? How often can teachers insist upon receiving their pay? Is a contract 
providing that the salary of a teacher shall not be paid until at the end of 
the term legal? If such contract is made, how often may a teacher insist 
upon being paid? May a legal contract be made providing a teacher shall 
be paid oftener than monthly? 

Upon what officers may boards issue orders in payment of teachers' sal- 
aries? Why these officers? May they issue orders for an amount greater 
than that held by such officers? What is the penalty for a violation of this 
provision of law? Under what conditions may teachers receive compensation 
for time during which school is closed? Give illustrations coming within 
these provisions. What is the teacher's remedy in cases of this kind when 
trustees refuse to pay for such time? 

What is the law regulating the dismissal of teachers? What reasons have 
been held to be sufficient? What should a teacher do when dismissed by a 
board in order to be entitled to his compensation for the full period of his 
contract? What would be the legal effect if a teacher should acquiesce in 
such dismissal? When may a board dismiss a teacher without cause? In 
these cases in what fVo ways may a teacher seek relief? Which is prefer- 
able? What relief may be requested? What is the rule in relation to 
absence to become a mother? In concealing certain facts? When may a 
woman teacher be dismissed for marrying? 

What record of attendance are teachers required to keep? How must such 
record be kept? Why is this an important record? Who is responsible for 
the safe-keeping of the register? To whom should the register be delivered 
after a term of school is closed? What records must the teacher verify? 
Who may administer this oath? When must a teacher verify this record? 

Who is the proper authority to prescribe rules for the government of a 
school? When such rules have been adopted what is the duty of the teacher 
in relation thereto? May a member of the board enter a schoolroom and 
direct the enforcement of such rules? 



2/6 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Does the law define the school hours? What are the usual hours? May- 
other hours be fixed? Who possesses the authority to fix these hours? li 
unreasonable hours are designated what is the relief? May a teacher close 
a school for any period without the approval of the trustees? What is the 
efifect upon contract of closing school without such consent? Is this consent 
necessary to close school on a legal holiday or for attending an institute? ' 

Is a teacher required to do the janitor work? A pupil? When may a 
teacher be required to do this work? Why? Is a teacher entitled to com- 
pensation for voluntarily performing this work? In what way may a teacher 
bring an action in a court to enforce payment of salary? Why are these 
methods objectionable? What other method may be pursued? Why is this 
preferable? 

Is there a provision of law regulating the garb which shall be worn by 
teachers? When and in what case was this question passed upon by Super- 
intendent Draper? What was his decision in the matter? When did Super- 
intendent Skinner pass upon the question? In what case? What 'was his 
decision? What further action in this case did Superintendent Skinner take 
on May iS, 1897? 

When a teacher under contract is unable to teach by reason of illness what 
should she do? Who may select a substitute teacher, if one is desired, dur- 
ing the illness of a teacher? Has the regular teacher any voice in the 
employment of such substitute? Under what conditions, in a case of this 
kind, may a trustee declare a teacher's contract void? What remedy has a 
teacher for unfair treatment in such cases? 

What is the general ruling in relation to the authority of a teacher over a 
pupil? Define the limits of a teacher's authority. What extreme views 
have courts taken on this question? Are these decisions safe guides for the 
present? What is the modern view of courts and of judicial departments 
upon this question? What has been the uniform ruling of the State Depart- 
ment? Explain the ruling of Superintendent Draper in relation to the 
authority of a teacher over a pupil during the noon recess. The right of a 
teacher to retain pupils after the regular school hours. How is the authority 
of a teacher restricted in this matter? What legal effect has the regulations 
of a board of trustees upon the teacher's power? 

To what schools do the provisions of Section 551 of the education law 
relate? How did this law effect those who were employed at the time it 
went into operation? When did it go into operation? Name each of the 
three qualifications, one of which must be possessed to be employed in a 
school under this law? 

By what authority has the subject of suspensions of pupils been consid- 
ered? What has changed rulings on this subject? Who is the proper 
authority to suspend a pupil? May a teacher dismiss a pupil? For what 
period? What should a teacher do in such case? When may a teacher 
suspend a pupil? What is the ruling on suspending ^pupils between 8 and 16 
years of age? What is public opinion on the theory of the establishment 
of schools? 

Who possesses the authority to expel a pupil? How does the compulsory 
attendance act efifect the expulsion of pupils? Why may a pupil havinjf 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 2^"] 

contagious disease be expelled? What other pupils may be expelled? How 
should they be proceeded against? Discuss the right of a teachef to inflict 
corporal punishment. What oath are all teachers and superintendents re- 
quired to take ? What effect has the failure to take such oath ? How is the 
salary of a superintendent or teacher effected who enters the military, naval 
or marine service? Before entering such service, whose approval is neces- 
sary if such superintendent or teacher is a resident of a city? Of a union 
free-school district or town? What are the rights of a superintendent or 
teacher who enters such service without this approval ? What is the duty of 
principals in relation to fire drills? What is the penalty for violation of this 
law? What is the general rule controlling school papers, athletics, school 
societies, etc.? 



CHAPTER XXXI 

RETIREMENT OF TEACHERS 

[Article 43b] 

The Legislature of 191 1 enacted a retirement law applicable to 
the teachers of the State and its essential provisions are as follows : 

1. It applies to all teachers and principals employed in the public 
schools of the cities and school districts of the State which were 
not at the time such law was enacted subject to the provisions of a 
retirement law. It also applies to the superintendents employed in 
such cities and in union free-school districts having a population of 
five thousand or more and to. district superintendents, 

2. It provides for a State Teachers Retirement Board to consist 
of five members. The members are appointed by the Commissioner 
of Education. One of such members at the time of his appointment 
must be a superintendent of schools in a city or district; one, an 
academic principal ; one, a teacher employed in an elementary 
school ; and one a woman teacher. The regular term of a member 
is five years. The members of the first board were appointed for 
one, two, three, four and five years, respectively, from January i, 
1912. Vacancies are filled by the Commissioner of Education for 
the unexpired terms. A member may be removed by the Commis- 
sioner of Education for cause on notice of charges and after a 
hearing. A member of the board may also resign. Members serve 
without pay but are entitled to expenses incurred in the perform- 
ance of their duties. 

3. The annual meeting of the board is held on the second Wednes- 
day in January and the board must hold regular meetings at least 
once in each three months. The board elects a secretary at a salary 
approved by the Commissioner of Education, but which cannot be 
in excess of $2,000. The board and its secretary have been assigned 
a room in the Education Building. 

4. The board has general charge of the administration of the 
retirement law. It prepares all necessary blanks and conducts any 

278 



RETIREMENT OF TEACHERS 2/9 

inquiry or investigation into the records of applicants for retirement 
which may be necessary to determine the rights of such applicants^ 
It gives instruction to boards of education in relation to the duty of 
such boards under the law. It issues warrants in payment of annu- 
ities and is empowered to prescribe regulations to aid in the enforce- 
ment of the provisions of the law. 

5. The State Treasurer is the custodian of the retirement fund, 
which he is required to deposit in banks or trust companies, and the 
law regulating the deposit of State funds applies to the deposit of 
the retirement fund. The retirement board is required to determine 
from time to time the amount of such fund which shall be perma- 
nently invested. The board is also required to determine the securi- 
ties in which such fund shall be invested. The fund can be in- 
vested only in those securities in which the trustees of savings 
banks may invest the deposits of such banks. 

6. The retirement fund consists of money obtained from the^ 
following sources: 

a Contributions made by teachers, school districts, towns and 
cities as required under the retirement law. 

b The income derived from the investment of the retirement 
fund. 

c Donations, legacies, gifts, bequests, etc, 

d Appropriations made by the State Legislature. 

7. All teachers employed in cities or school districts to which the 
retirement law applies, who have entered into contracts since 
August I, 191 1, and all teachers in such cities or districts or in a 
town who may hereafter enter into contracts, shall pay into the 
teachers retirement fund i per cent annually of their salaries under 
such contracts. Each city and school district is also required to pay 
into this fund a sum equal to i per cent of the aggregate amount 
paid by such city, town or district in salaries to its teachers. Each 
city, town or district — the employer — pays an amount equal to 
that which is paid by the teachers — the employees — into this State 
fund. Any teacher within such cities or districts who entered into 
contract prior to August i, 191 1, had the privilege of contributing- 
I per cent annually of the salary paid pursuant to such contract 
and thereupon became entitled to all the benefits conferred by the 
law. Boards of education are required to deduct from the salaries 
of teachers the amount which such teachers are required to pay 
into the retirement fund. The amount thus deducted should be 



28o NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

paid into the treasury of the city, town or district and credited to 
the school fund. This money is not paid into the State treasury. 
The Commissioner of Education, in apportioning the State funds, 
will deduct an amount equal to 2 per cent of the salaries of the 
teachers employed in a city, town or school district from the public 
money to which such city, town or district is entitled, and will issue 
a warrant from the State Comptroller for the payment into the 
State treasury, to be credited to the State teachers retirement fund, 
the amount which thie several cities, towns, school districts and the 
teachers employed therein are required to pay into such fund. The 
amount of money which a city, town or district will receive will be 
less the amount which a city, town or district and its teachers are 
required to pay into the State teachers retirement fund. The result 
of this arrangement is that the teacher contributes i per cent and 
the district i per cent of such teacher's salary, to the credit of the 
State teachers retirement fund. 

8. In a city or in a union free-school district a teacher rtiay be 
retired either upon her own application or the application of her 
board of education. If a teacher in a city, union free-school dis- 
trict or town is entitled to be retired and has become inefficient and 
such teacher does not make application to be retired, her board of 
education may file an application for her retirement. The request 
for retirement must be in the form prescribed by the retirement 
board, which will provide blanks for that purpose. Such proof as 
the board may require to show that an applicant has satisfied the 
requirements for retirement must be filed with the application. 
The retirement board must pass upon each request and determine 
whether or not it shall be granted. There are two conditions on 
which teachers may be retired. These are as follows : 

a A teacher must have taught in public schools for a period of 
twenty-five years. Such teacher must have taught the last fifteen 
of such twenty-five years in the public schools of those districts, 
towns or cities to which this act applies. The law does not exact 
even that the first ten years of such service shall have been in the 
State. A teacher who meets these requirements and who has paid 
the required amount into the retirement fund may be retired. 

h A teacher who has become physically or mentally incapacitated 
may be retired by the board if she shows that she has taught in 
public schools for fifteen years and that the last nine years of such 
period of fifteen years she taught in the schools of the cities, towns 



RETIREMENT OF TEACHERS 281 

or districts to which this law appHes. Where a teacher submits 
sufficient proof with her appHcation to show that she satisfies these 
conditions, the board has discretion to grant the appHcation for 
retirement. 

The question is raised as to the discretion of the board in cases 
of teachers who have complied with the provisions of section 1109 
by showing the required period of service, etc. The law does not 
provide nor does the language of the law contemplate that all teach- 
ers upon rendering twenty-five years of service shall be retired. 
The law states that a teacher who satisfies the conditions imposed 
by subdivision i of section 1109 shall be entitled to an annuity upon 
her retirement from actual service as such teacher. The law does 
not read that a teacher satisfying such conditions shall be retired, 
but it reads that upon retirement she shall receive an annuity. The 
same provision is found in subdivision 2 of the same section. This 
provision of law reads that a teacher satisfying the conditions im- 
posed therein may be retired and upon her retirement shall receive 
an annuity, etc. Then again subdivision 3 provides that, " The 
board shall pass upon all requests for retirement, and shall deter- 
' mine whether such requests should be granted." This language 
clearly implies a discretion on the part of the board. 

The retirement board will retire teachers after twenty-five years 
of service or more, provided good reason exists for such action. 
It will be necessary to establish to the satisfaction of this board that 
the physical condition of the teacher is such that she should be 
retired or that, because of her inefficiency at this period of life, it 
will be for the good of the school in which she is teaching that she 
should be retired. The law itself contains the reasonable provision 
that, if a teacher has become physically or mentally incapacitated 
after fifteen years of service, she may on "her application be retired. 
In other words, teachers will not be retired until they have become 
inefficient or incapacitated and their retirement is necessary, for the 
efficiency of the service. If the retirement board should exercise 
an unwise discretion in retiring teachers, the law contains the 
requisite remedy by providing for appeal under the usual pro- 
cedure to the Commissioner of Education, to review the action 
of the retirement board. This proceeding could be instituted by 
any teacher within the territory to which the law applies or by any 
taxpayer of the State. 

9. The annuity to which a teacher upon retirement shall be enti- 



282 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

tied is one-half of her average annual salary for the period of five 
years prior to the time of her retirement. An annuity in no case, 
however, shall exceed the sum of six hundred dollars. To be enti- 
tled to an annuity, a teacher must have paid into the retirement fund 
50 per cent of her annuity. If this amount has not been paid at the 
time of her retirement, she may make a cash payment which, when 
added to her previous contributions to such fund, will equal 50 per 
cent of her annuity. If a teacher is not able to make such cash 
payment, the payment of her annuity may be withheld and credited 
to her payments until the portion of the annuity withheld shall equal 
the required 50 per cent of her annuity. Annuities will be paid 
quarterly and will date from the date on which the retirement board 
gives favorable action on an application. 

10. Section 1109-b specifically provides that this law shall not 
apply to any county, city or district in which the teachers in the 
public schools are required or authorized to contribute to a teachers 
retirement fund, except upon a petition of two-thirds of all the 
teachers of such city or district, which petition must be duly signed 
and verified. In other words, if the teachers of Rochester desire 
to come under this act, two-thirds of all the teachers of such city ' 
must sign a petition duly verified and file such petition with the 
retirement board. But this section further provides that upon any 
local retirement organization taking such action, the organization 
or society created under the local act shall be dissolved and discon- 
tinued. If the teachers of the city of Rochester should therefore 
come under the law, their local retirement organization becomes 
dissolved and discontinued. The funds in their local treasury would 
therefore be paid into the State treasury and credited to the State 
retirement fund for the purpose of meeting annuities which have 
already accrued under the provisions of the Rochester act. 

Law Constitutional. — The Appellate Division of the Third 
Department of the Supreme Court has determined that the law 
providing for a teachers retirement fund is constitutional. The 
teachers of the city of Yonkers voted under the provisions of the 
State teachers retirement law to abandon the local city retirement 
law and come under the provisions of the State law. The State 
retirement fund board took such formal action as the law required 
to accept the teachers of Yonkers, but the officials of that city in 
charge of the local fund declined to pay over to the State the local 
funds, as required under the State law. The Appellate Division 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 283 

also held that the provision of the State law to the effect that when- 
ever two- thirds of the teachers of any county, city or district having 
a local or special act petition to come under the provisions of the 
general act, the State board may issue an order dissolving the local 
organization and bringing all the teachers of such county, city or 
district within the operation of the general law, is constitutional. 
(Bristol and Others v. Board of Trustees of Yonkers Public School 
Teachers Retirement Fund, etc., 173 App. Div. 545.) 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

To what teachers does this law apply? To what superintdidents ? What 
board is created? By whom appointed? Describe the composition of the 
board. How are vacancies filled? How may members be removed? When 
is the annual meeting held? What are the general duties of such board? 
Who is custodian of the retirement fund? How must it be deposited? Who 
determines upon such securities? Of what does the fund consist? What 
teachers are required to come under this law? What teachers may? Explain 
how contributions are paid. How may a teacher be retired in a union free- 
school district? In a common-school district? Who determines upon the 
retirement of a teacher? Explain each condition upon which a teacher may 
be retired. What may be said upon the discretion of the board to retire a 
teacher? What relief has a teacher from the unjust action of the board? 
What annuity may a teacher receive? To what sections of the State does 
not this law apply? How may the teachers of such sections come under the 
law? What decision has been rendered by the courts on this law? 



CHAPTER XXXII 

CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS 

[Chapter 786, Laws of 1917] 

General Statement. — This chapter is the first general law 
enacted in New York State for the regulation and management of 
the school systems of the several cities of the State, By this law 
about two hundred fifty special laws, including chapters in city 
charters, and containing about six hundred pages of printed matter, 
were repealed. One act of twenty-fOur pages was substituted for 
these several special laws. The provisions of this law apply to 
each city in the State. 

Board of Education. — Under the terms of this law a board of 
education is established for each city of the State. The educational 
affairs of the city are placed under the control and management of 
such board. The name under which these officers are known is 
members of the board of education. 

Qualifications of Members. — No person is legally qualified to 
hold the office of member of a board of education in a city who is 
not a citizen of the United States and wJio has not been a resident 
of the city for which he is chosen for a period of at least three 
years immediately preceding the date of his election or appointment. 

Number of Members. — i. A board of education in a city must 
contain at least three members and may not contain more than nine 
members. Each city having a board of education of more than 
three members and not more than nine members is to continue to 
have such nuniber of members on its board as such board contained 
immediately preceding the date when this law became operative. 
This law went into effect June 8, 1917. 

2. The law provides that in a city of one million population or 
more the board of education shall consist, of seven members. There 
is but one such city in this State, namely, New York. The board 
of education in such city, at the time the act went into effect, con- 
tained forty-six members. By the provisions of this law the num- 
ber of members on that board is reduced to seven. 

284 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS 285 

3. In a city in which the number of members exceed nine, such 
number must be reduced to nine. In a city in which such members 
are appointed by the mayor, that official should have appointed a 
new board of nine as soon as the new law went into effect. In a 
city in which such members are elected no new members should be 
elected as vacancies occur until the number is reduced to less than 
nine. 

4. Whenever a new city is created by the Legislature the board 
of education, or boards of education, in charge of the educational 
affairs of the several districts, which are included within the limits 
of such city, are to continue to operate the schools until the first 
Tuesday in May following the date on which such city is estab- 
lished. Thereafter such city is to have a board of education to 
consist of five members. 

How Chosen. — It was not the purpose of this law to change in 
any way the method by which members of boards of education were 
chosen in the several cities of the State at the time the law became 
operative. The law provided therefore that in each city the method 
by which members of a board of education had been chosen should 
be continued in that city. Members of boards of education in the 
several cities of the State were chosen by the following methods : 

1. By appointment by the mayor. 

2. By election at a special school election held at a time other 
than the general or municipal election. 

3. By election held at the time of either the general or the munici- 
pal election. 

4. By election in certain union free-school districts at the time of 
the annual school election held on the first Tuesday in August. 

5. In one city, Buffalo, the members of the board of education 
are to be appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the council. 

In all cities except New York the members of the board of edu- 
cation are to be chosen from the city at large. Provision is made 
by which in the city of New York two members shall be chosen 
from the borough of Manhattan, two members from the borough of 
Brooklyn and one each from the boroughs of The Bronx, Queens 
and Richmond. 

Term of Office — When Appointed or Elected. — i. The full 
term of office of a member of a board of education in the city of 
New York is seven years; in the cities of Albany, Oswego and 
Troy, six years ; and in all other cities of the State, five years. 



286 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

2. The first board of education appointed under the provisions 
of this act, in the city of New York, is to be appointed on the first 
Wednesday in January, 1918. In appointing these members the 
mayor shall designate them for terms so that the term of one mem- 
ber shall expire on the first Tuesday in May of each of the follow- 
ing years: 1919, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1924, and 1925. In 1919 
and thereafter the mayor will annually appoint one member of the 
board of education for a term of seven years. 

3. The first board of education to be appointed in the city of 
Buffalo under the provisions of this law is to be appointed on 
January 15, 1918, and these members are appointed so that they 
shall serve for terms of one, two, three, four, and five years respec- 
tively from the first Tuesday in May, 1917. 

4. In the cities in which the number of members on the board 
exceeded nine, and the members of such boards are appointed, by 
the mayor, the terms of all such members terminated on June 8, 
19 1 7, and the mayor of the city was required to appoint a new 
board of nine members. In appointing such members the mayor 
was required to name two to serve until the first Tuesday in May, 
1918; two to serve until the first Tuesday of May, 1919; two to 
serve until the first Tuesday in May, 1920; two to serve until the 
first Tuesday in May, 182 1 ; and one to serve until the first Tuesday 
in May, 1922. As their terms expire the mayor shall fill the vacan- 
cies caused thereby for terms of five years. 

5. In the cities in which the number of members on a board of 
education exceeds nine and the members of such board are chosen 
by the people at an election, no vacancy should be filled until the 
number of members on such board is less than nine. When the 
term for which a member of a board of education was elected prior 
to June 8, 1917, expires, such member continues to serve until his 
successor is chosen and such successor cannot be chosen until the 
first Tuesday in May following. 

Vacancies. — i. When a vacancy occurs other than by expira- 
tion of term in a city in which the members of a board of education 
are elected by the people the mayor of the city should fill such 
vacancy by appointment until the next election occurs at which 
members of a board of education may be elected. Such vacancy 
should then be filled for the balance of the unexpired term. 

2. When such a vacancy occurs in a city in which the members 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS 287 

of such board are appointed by the mayor, such vacancy should be 
filled by the mayor for the unexpired portion of such term. 

Meetings of Board. — i. The annual meeting of each board of 
education must be held on the second Tuesday in May. 

2. Regular meetings of the board must be held at stated times 
fixed by the board. These meetings must be held as often at least 
as once each month. The board may determine by regulation to 
hold such meetings oftener. 

3. The board may hold special meetings and must prescribe a 
method by which such meetings may be called. Special meetings 
must, therefore, be called by the method prescribed by the board. 

Powers and Duties of City Board of Education. — The law 
confers specific powers and duties upon the board of education. 
Such board is the governing body of the schools of a city. The 
intention of the law is to confer upon a board such broad general 
powers that it may do anything necessary to provide the educa- 
tional facilities for the city which the people of such city desire. 
The law confers the following general powers upon a board of 
education : 

1. To perform any duty imposed upon boards of education or 
trustees of common schools under this chapter or other statutes, or 
the regulations of The University of the State of New York or the 
Commissioner of Education so far as they may be applicable to the 
school or other educational affairs of a city, and not inconsistent 
with the provisions of this article. 

2. To create, abolish, maintain and consolidate such positions, 
divisions, boards or bureaus as, in its judgment, may be necessary 
for the proper and efficient administration of its work ; to appoint 
a superintendent of schools, such associate, district and other super- 
intendents, examiners, directors, supervisors, principals, teachers, 
lecturers, special instructors, medical inspectors, nurses, auditors, 
attendance officers, secretaries, clerks, janitors and other employees 
and other persons or experts in educational, social or recreational 
work or in the business management or direction of its affairs as 
said board shall determine necessary for the efficient management 
of the schools and other educational, social, recreational and busi- 
ness activities; and to determine their duties except as otherwise 
provided herein. 

3. To have the care, custody, control and safekeeping of all school 
property or other property of the city used for educational, social 



288 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

or recreational work and not specifically placed by law under the 
control of some other body or officer, and to prescribe rules and 
regulations for the preservation of such property. 

4. To puchase and furnish such apparatus, maps, globes, books, 
furniture and other equipment and supplies as may be necessary for 
the proper and efficient management of the schools and other educa- 
tional, social and recreational activities and interests under its man- 
agement and control. To provide textbooks or other supplies to 
all the children attending the schools of such cities in which free 
textbooks or other supplies are lawfully provided prior to the time 
this act goes into effect. 

5. To establish and maintain such free elementary schools, high 
schools, training schools, vocational and industrial schools, kinder- 
gartens, teachnical schools, night schools, part-time or continuation 
schools, vacation schools, schools for adults, open air schools, schools 
for the mentally and physically defective children or such other 
schools or classes as such board shall deem necessary to meet the 
needs and demands of the city. 

6. To establish and maintain libraries which may be open to the 
public, to organize and maintain public lecture courses, and to estab- 
lish and equip playgrounds, recreation centers, social centers, and 
reading rooms from such funds as the education law or other 
statutes authorize and the State appropriates, for such purposes, and 
from such other funds as may be provided therefor from local taxa- 
tion or other sources. 

7. To authorize the general courses of study which shall be given 
in the schools and to approve the content of such courses before 
they become operative. 

8. To authorize and determine the textbooks to be used in the 
schools under its jurisdiction, but in a city having a board of super- 
intendents, the books thus authorized and determined shall be from 
lists recommended by such board. 

9. To prescribe such regulations and by-laws as may be necessary 
to make effectual the provisions of this chapter and for the conduct 
of the proceedings of said board and the transaction of its business 
affairs, for the general management, operation, control, maintenance 
and discipline of the schools, and of all other educational, social 
or recreational activities and other interests under its charge or 
direction. 

10. To perform such other duties and possess such other powers 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS 289 

as may be required to administer the affairs placed under its control 
and management, to execute all powers vested in it, and to promote 
the best interests of the schools and other activities committed to its 
care. 

It will be observed that under the foregoing provisions of law a 
board of education has very broad powers. It may create such 
organization for the management and operation of the school sys- 
tem as in the judgment of the board may be necessary. It may 
change such organization from time to time by abolishing unneces- 
sary positions, by creating new positions and by consolidating posi- 
tions, boards, bureaus, etc. 

Contracts. — i. A board of education is prohibited from making 
a contract for the construction, alteration, or remodeling of^ a school 
building, or for the purchase of sites, furniture, or equipment unless 
such board shall have duly advertised for estimates. The contract 
in each case must be awarded by the board of education to the low- 
est responsible bidder furnishing such security as the board of edu- 
cation may require for the proper performance of the terms of such 
contract. 

2. A board of education is also prohibited from incurring a lia- 
bility or an expense chargeable against the funds under its control 
or the city, for any purpose whatever, in excess of the amount ap- 
propriated or available therefor or otherwise authorized by law. 

Local School Boards. — i. New York city was divided into local 
school board districts under the provisions of its charter. Such 
districts are continued under the present general law. No other 
city has such districts. The board of education is given the power 
to modify the boundaries of such districts, to consolidate two or 
more districts and to establish new districts. 

2. Each of these districts has a local school board of five mem- 
bers. The members of these boards are appointed by the president 
of the borough in which the district is located. In addition to 
these five members the board of education must designate one mem- 
ber of the board of education as member of such board. The super- 
intendent of schools must assign one district superintendent to advise 
such boards. 

3. The full term of a member of a local board is five years. 
Members in office on June 8, 19171, when the city law went into 
effect, serve out their terms of office. A vacancy on such board 
is filled by the borough president for the unexpired term. 

19 



290 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

4. The law specifically confers upon^ these boards the following 

duties : 

T, To visit the schools in its district at least once each quarter. 

2. To make recommendations to the board of education with 
respect to matters affecting the interests of the schools. 

3. To transfer teachers from school to school, within the juris- 
diction of a local board district under such regulations as the board 
of education may prescribe. 

4. To excuse absences of teachers tmder regislations .prescribed 
by the board of education. 

5. To hear charges against teachers or principals as the regula- 
tions of the board of education prescribes. 

6. To perform such other duties as the regulations of the board 
of education impose upon such local boards. ' 

7. To prescribe by-laws regulating the exercise of the powers 
and duties of such local district board. Such by-laws, of course, 
must not conflict with the by-laws of the board of education. 

8. To elect a secrtary and to prescribe his duties. 

The board of education is required to provide for the expenses of 
such local board and a place for its meetings. 

The secretary of such board may administer oaths and take 
affidavits in all matters pertaining to the affairs of the schools in 
his district in which, a local board has power to act. For such 
purpose a secretary possesses the power of a commissioner of deeds. 
The secretary is entitled to receive no fee or other emolument. 

SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS BOARD OF SUPERINTENDENTS 

Term. — i. The law fixes a term of office for superintendents in 
cities of the first class only. Under former statutes the superintend- 
ents of the three cities of the first class were the only superintendents 
in the State who had a fixed term. In one of these cities, the term 
was four years, in another, five years, and in the third, six years. 
In the present statute the term of the superintendent in a city of 
this class is fixed for a period of six years from the date of his 
appointment. The first class (pities are New York, Buffalo, and 
Rochester. 

2. The term of office of a superintendent in each of the other 
cities of the State is during the pleasure of the board of education. 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS 29 1 

3. Each superintendent in office when the new law went into 
effect is to serve out the term for which he was chosen. 

Removal. — A superintendent in the three cities for which a 
fixed term is prescribed may be removed for cause only. In such 
cases definite charges must be preferred against the superintendent ; 
a hearing must be accorded him with the right to appear by counsel 
and witnesses. The action of a board in removing a superintendent 
before the expiration of his term of office is reviewable on appeal, 
by the* Commissioner of Education. In each of the other cities a 
superintendent may be removed at the pleasure of the board. 

Resignation. — ^^A superintendent may vacate his position by 
filing his written resignation with the board of education. 

Eligibility. — No person is eligible to the position of superin- 
tendent of schools who does not possess one of the following quali- 
fications : 

1. A graduate of a college or university approved by The Uni^ 
versity of the State of New York, and has had at least five years' 
successful experience in the teaching or in the supervision of public 
schools since graduation ; or 

2. A holder of a superintendent's certificate issued by the com- 
missioner of education under regulations prescribed by the Regents 
of The University of the State of New York, and has had at least 
ten years' successful experience in teaching, or in public school 
administration, or equivalent educational experience approved by 
the Commissioner of Education. 

Powers and Duties. — The present law is the first general act 
in this State which confers definite professional powers upon a city 
superintendent of schools. The law provides that a superintendent 
shall perform certain fixed- functions, and no other official in the 
school system may perform these duties. Very many of these 
duties may be amplified under regulations of the board of educa- 
tion. The law specifically provides that a superintendent of schools 
shall exercise the powers which are conferred upon him, subject 
to the by-laws of the board. This provision of law may not be 
construed to mean that a board of education may defeat the purpose 
^f the law by prescribing unreasonable rules, which shall nullify the 
law, or prevent the superintendent from performing those official 
functions which are generally recognized in educational work to be 
the functions of a city superintendent and which the law intended 
such officer should exercise. The board of education may, however. 



292 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

enact any reasonable by-law to make more effective the work of the 
city superintendent and to enable that officer to perform the duties 
in behalf of the school system which the enactment of this law 
intended the city superintendent should perform. 

The law confers the following powers and duties upon the super- 
intendent : 

1. To enforce all provisions of law and all rules and regulations 
relating to the management of the schools and other educational, 
social and recreational activities under the direction of the board 
of education, to be the chief executive officer of such board and the 
educational system, and to have a seat in the board of education 
and the right to speak on all matters before the board, but not to 
vol!e. 

2. To prepare the content of each course of study authorized by 
the board of education, but in a city having a board of superintend- 
ents the content of each of such courses shall be prepared and recom- 

, mended by the board of superintendents, submitted to the board of 
education for its approval and, when thus approved, the superin- 
tendent or board of superintendents, as the case may be^ shall cause 
such courses of study to be used in the grades, classes and schools 
for which they are authorized. 

3. To recommend suitable lists of textbooks to be used in the 
schools, but in a city having a board of superintendents such board 
of superintendents shall recommend to the board of education such 
lists, 

4. To have supervision and direction of associate, district and 
other superintendents, directors, supervisors, principals, teachers, 
lecturers, medical inspectors, nurses, auditors, attendance officers, 
janitors and other persons employed in the management of the 
schools or the other educational activities of the city authorized by 
this chapter and under the direction and management of the board 
of education ; to transfer teachers from one school to another, or 
from one grade of the course of study to another grade in such 
course, and to report immediately such transfers to said board for 
its consideration and action, but in a city having a board of super- 
intendents such transfers shall be made upon the recommendation 
of such board ; to report to said board of education violations of 
regulations and cases of insubordination, and to suspend an asso- 
ciate, district or other superintendent, director, supervisor, expert, 
principal, teacher or other employee until the next regular meeting 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS 293 

of the board, when all facts relating to the case shall be submitted 
to the board for its consideration and action. 

5. To have supervision and direction over the enforcement and 
observance of the courses of study, the examination and promotion 
of pupils, and over all other matters pertaining to playgrounds, 
medical inspection, recreation and social center work, libraries, 
lectures and all the other educational activities and interests under 
the management, direction and control of the board of education, 
but in a city having a board of superintendents rules and regulations 
for the promotion and graduation of pupils shall be made by such 
board. 

6. To issue such licenses to teachers, principals, directors and 
other members of the teaching and supervising staff as may be 
required under the regulations of the board of education in cities 
in which such board requires its' teachers to hold qualifications in 
addition to or in advance of the minimum qualifications required 
under this chapter. In a city having a board of examiners, such 
licenses shall be issued on the recommendation of such board. 

7. In addition to the foregoing powers and duties, the superin- 
tendent of schools must perform any other power or duty required 
of him through the by-laws of the board of education and which 
are not inconsistent with provisions of law. 

ASSOCIATE SUPERINTENDENT BOARD OF SUPERINTENDENTS 

General Provisions. — The present law continues that provision 
of the former law regulating the school system of the city of New 
York which established a board of superintendents. Associate su- 
perintendents are appointed by the board of education without the 
recommendation of the superintendent of schools. The board of 
superintendents consists of the superintendent of schools, who is 
chairman of such board, and the eight associate superintendents of 
that city. An associate superintendent must possess the same qual- 
ifications which are prescribed for a superintendent. The term of 
office of an associate superintendent is six years. 

The associate superintendents in office on May 8, 1917, the date 
when the city school law went into effect, are continued in office 
until the expiration of their terms. An associate superintendent may 
also, like a city superintendent, vacate his office by filing a written 
resignation with the board. Associate superintendents must per- 



294 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

form such duties as the by-laws of the board of education require 
in addition to serving as members of the board of superintendents. 
The law confers the following specific powers and duties upon a 
board of superintendents : 

1. Prepare and recommend the content of each course of study. 

2. Cause courses of study, which have been properly aufhorized 
and adopted, to be used in grades, classes and schools^ for which 
they are intended. 

3. Recommend to the board of education suitable lists of text- 
books. 

4. Recommend to the superintendent of schools the teachers to be 
transferred from one school to another school of from one grade of 
the course of study to another grade in such course. 

5. Prescribe rules* for the promotion and graduation of pupils. 

6. Recommend for probationary appointment, to the board of 
education, district superintendents, directors, supervisors, principals, 
teachers and all other members of the teaching and supervisory staff 
except associate superintendents and members of the board of 
examiners. 

7. Recommend to the board of education the discontinuance of 
the services of a district superintendent, director, supervisor, prin- 
cipal, teacher or any other member of the teaching or supervisory 
staff, who has been appointed on probation but whose work is so 
unsatisfactory that he should not be permitted to complete his pro- 
bationary period. 

8. Report in writing to the board of education, recommendations 
for the permanent appointments of those persons who have served 
probationary periods and have been found to be competent, efficient 
and satisfactory. 

9. Recommend to the board of education the academic and pro- 
fessional qualifications required for each kind or grade of license 
and to also recommend the kinds and grades of licenses which shall 
be required to enter the teaching service as principal, branch-princi- 
pal, directors, supervisor or teacher of special branches, head of 
department, assistant or any other position on the teaching staff. 

It will be observed from the foregoing duties exercised by the 
board of superintendents that the intention of the law is to confer 
upon the board of superintendents of the city of New York, certain 
professional functions which, in the other cities, are exercised by 
the superintendent of schools. 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS 295 

Assistant, District and Other Superintendents. — i. In addition 
to a city superintendent of schools and associate superintend- 
ents in the city of New York, the law authorizes the board 
of education of each city to create such assistant, district, or 
other superintendents as may be necessary for the proper super- 
vision and management of the schools of the city. These super- 
intendents are appointed by the board of education for a pro- 
bationary period. This period may be fixed by the board for 
not less than one year and not more than three years. Any time 
during this probationary period such superintendents may be re- 
moved by the board of education on the recommendation of the 
city superintendent, but in the city of New York removal in such 
case must be on the recommendation of the board of superintend- 
ents. At the termination of the probationary term of service, the 
superintendent of schools and in the city of New York the board of 
superintendents is required to make a report to the board of educa- 
tion upon the work which these officers have performed. If that 
report certifies that these officers have been found competent, ef- 
ficient, and satisfactory, they become permanent officers in the school 
system and may thereafter be removed for cause only. 

2. The law provides that persons serving in such positions when 
the .present act went into effect, June 8, 1917, who had served the 
full probationary period or had rendered satisfactorily an equivalent 
period of service, shall thereafter hold their positions during good 
behavior and efficient, competent service. They may not be re- 
moved except for cause, after hearing, and by a majority vote of 
the members of the board of education. Under this provision of 
law the district superintendents of the city of New York have a 
permanent tenure and in this respect are on the same basis as direct- 
ors and grammar and high school principals in such city. 

Board of Examiners. — New York city must have a board of 
N examiners consisting of four members. Each other city may create 
a board which has sufficient work to justify the establishment of 
such board. No member of a board of examiners may serve as a 
member of the teaching or supervisory staffs of the city. Members 
of a board of examiners are appointed by the board of educa- 
tion. Members appointed to a board of examiners must serve 
the probationary period fixed by the board of education. This 
period inay be not less than one year and not more than thred 
years. Members of such board in office on June 8, 1917, who had 



296 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

rendered satisfactory service for a period of time equivalent to the 
probationary period prescribed by the board of education are entitled 
to hold their positions during good behavior and competent and 
efficient service. A member of such board may be removed for 
cause, but must be granted a formal hearing. A majority of the 
members of the board is necessary to effect a removal. 

The law specifies that a board of examiners shall perform the 
following duties : 

1. To hold examinations whenever necessary. 

2. To examine all applicants for positions in the school system of 
the city, except examiners, who are required to be examined or to 
have their names placed upon ehgible lists in order to be eligible for 
appointment to such positions. 

3. To prepare all necessary eligible lists. 

4. To employ temporary assistance when necessary at such com- 
pensation as the board of education shall determine. 

5. To perform any other duty required by the board of educa- 
tion. 

TEACHING STAFF 

Who Are Included, — Under this heading may be included 
elementary school teachers, vocational school teachers, industrial 
school teachers, high school teachers, training school teachers, special 
teachers, school principals, special teachers and supervisors and 
directors. 

How Appointed. — All members of the teachifig staff are ap- 
pointed by the board of education on the recommendation of the 
superintendent of schools. In New York city the recommendation 
must be by the board of . superintendents. In Buffalo and in New 
York city all members of the teaching staff, except a principal of a 
high school, a principal or teacher of a training school or a director 
of a special branch, must be appointed from the first three on an 
eligible list. A board of education of any other city may prescribe 
rules requiring appointments to be made from eligible lists estab- 
lished under the rules of such board. 

Eligible Lists. — i. In a city in which the law requires an 
eligible list, as in Buffalo and New York, such list must be pre- 
pared by the board of examiners. In any other city in which an 
eligible list is required under the regulations of the board of edu- 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS 297 

cation such list must be prepared as the regulations of the board 
direct. 

2. Eligible lists may not be merged and one list must be ex- 
hausted before nominations are made -from a list established at a 
subsequent date. No eligible list, except the eligible list for prin- 
cipals, shall remain in force for a longer period than three years. 
Eligible lists in force June 8, 1917, are in no way affected by the 
new city school law. 

3. No person may be placed upon an eligible list who does not 
satisfy the requirements of the law as to academic and professional 
qualifications and such further requirements as the Commissioner 
of Education may prescribe. The board of education of a city 
may also prescribe additional or higher qualifications for the teach- 
ers to be employed in its city. 

Certificate or License. — In addition to such certificate as the 
State law or the regulations prescribed by the Commissioner of 
Education requires, a teacher must also obtain the kind and grade 
of license prescribed under the regulations of the board of educa- 
tion. The superintendent of schools recommends to the board of 
education the kind and grades of licenses which shall be required 
for each position in the teaching staff of the city. He also recom- 
mends the academic and the professional training which shall be 
prescribed for such positions. In the city of New York such 
recommendations in relation to the kind and grades of licenses 
and the academic and professional training must be made by the 
board of superintendents. A person employed in a position for 
which a license is required who does not possess the appropriate 
license has no claim against the city or the board of education for 
salary. The board of education in prescribing the kinds of certifi- 
cates and grades thereof and the academic and professional quali- 
fications must be governed by the law in reference to such matters 
and by regulations on the same subject which have been prescribed 
by the Commissioner of Education. 

Term of Employment. — i. In the first instance members of 
the teaching staff are appointed for a probationary period. The 
board of education of each city should fix such period by the 
adoption of a by-law. That period may not be less than one year 
and not more than three years. In prescribing such by-law the 
board of education in a city in which the members of the teaching 
staff have not had a permanent tenure should specify what pro- 



298 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

bationary period the members of such staff who have been in the 
service of such city shall serve before having permanent tenure. 
After serving that period all members of the teaching staff have 
parmanent tenure. 

2. A member of the teaching staff may be discontinued at any 
time during his probationary period by the board of education upon 
the recommendation of the superintendent of schools. In the city 
of New York such recommendation must be made by the board of 
superintendents. * 

3. The superintendent of schools is required to make a written 
report to the board of education on each member of the teaching 
staff who has completed a probationary period recommending for 
permanent appointment, those who have been found competent, 
efficient and satisfactory. In the city of New York such recommend- 
ations must be made by the board of superintendents. Upon pre- 
sentation of such report to the board of education the persons 
named therein shall be entitled to hold their positions during good 
behavior and efficient and competent service. Thereafter they are 
removable for cause only and after a formal hearing. A majority 
vote of the members of the board is necessary to remove a teacher. 

Salary. — No change whatever is made by the new city law in 
the salary of the teaching force. The salaries of all teachers and of 
all other members of the teaching staff are to continue to be regu- 
lated as such salaries were regulated under previous laws. The 
provisions of the charter of the city of New York regulating the 
salaries of teachers in that city was not repealed or modified. 

Other Employees. — All other employees not included in the 
supervisory or the teaching staff, such, for instance, as school 
nurses, medical inspectors, clerks, auditors, janitors, et cetera, are 
appointed by the board of education subject to the provisions of 
the by-laws of such board. 

Officers, Teachers, et cetera, Continued. — i. Each person 
holding an office or position in the schools of the city on June 2, 
1917, when the new city laAV went into effect, is expressly continued 
in such office or position. Each board or bureau legally established 
and in operation on the same date is also expressly continued. Each 
such person is continued in the office or position or board or bureau 
for the period of time for which he was appointed. A board may, 
for cause and after a hearing, remove a person from the position 
which he holds. A board is also given the power to abolish un- 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS' 299 

necessary positions or offices and to consolidate offices, positions, 
bureaus, boards, etc. 

2. When a board of education abolishes an office or position and' 
creates a new position or office for the performance of duties simi- 
lar to those performed in the office or position abolished, the per- 
son holding such position or office at the time it was abolished must 
be appointed to the new office or position without reduction in salary 
or increment. The person in such position at the time it was abol- 
ished is entitled to the new position if his record has been one of 
faithful, competent service. 

3. If an office or position is abolished, or if it is consolidated with 
another, and a new position is not created, the person filling the 
position at the time such position was abolished or consolidated is 
entitled to have his name placed upon a preferred list of eligible 
candidates. Such person is also entitled to appointment to an office 
or position similar to the one which he filled at the time his office 
or position was abolished, without reduction in salary or increment, 
provided his record had been one of faithful, competent service. 
The names of persons holding offices which have been abolished 
shall be placed upon a preferred eligible list in the order in which 
their services are discontinued. 

Bonds of Employees. — i. In certain cities of the State the board 
of estimate and apportionment possessed authority under previous 
laws to require certain officers and employees in the school system 
to give bonds for the faithful performance of their duties and for 
funds held in their custody and for the financial protection of the 
city. In certain other cities not having a board of estimate and 
apportionment the body of officers performing the duties performed 
by such board of estimate and apportionment possess the power 
under former laws to require such bonds. In such cities this body 
or officers may continue to require bonds of such employees. 

2. In all other cities of the State the board of education may 
require ^such of its employees as it deems necessary to give bonds. 
The board may also determine the amount of such bond. 

3. The premiums on the bonds of all such employees must be paid 
by the city. 

SITES 

Authority to Purchase. — A board of education, except in 
certain cities, is authorized to purchase sites or additions to exist- 



300 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

ing sites or real property for other educational purposes. The 
exception to this general rule is in cities of the second class in 
which the common council, the board of estimate and apportionment, 
the board of contract and supply, and the commissioner of public 
works, or other city officials, or any one of such officials had the 
legal authority under the law in force before the enactment of the 
new city school law to purchase real property for educational needs, 
in which case such officials will continue to exercise the same power 
in the purchase of school sites and property for other school pur- 
poses. In no case, however, may a school site or an addition to a 
school site be purchased unless such site is designated by a majority 
vote of the board of education. Even in cities in which one or more 
of the municipal officers or boards above enumerated have the power 
to purchase land for school sites, such land may not be purchased 
by these officers for that purpose until the site is approved by the 
board of education. 

2. When it is necessary to purchase a school site, an addition to 
a school site, or to obtain land for a playground or recreation center, 
or to purchase real property for any other purpose authorized un- 
der the education law, a board of education is authorized to take 
options on property desirable for such purposes. Before a board 
of education may take title to property for such purposes, it must 
adopt a resolution stating the necessity which requires t^ie pur- 
chase of such property and describing the property by metes and 
bounds. The board of education must also make an estimate of 
the funds necessary to purchase such site. If money is available 
.which may be used for the purchase of such property, the trans- 
action may be closed, the property acq\iired and paid for. If funds 
are not available for the purchase of such property, the required 
amount may be included in the next annual budget of the board 
of education. The board may also include such amount in a special 
budget if such special budget 'is issued. The board of education, 
before acquiring title to real property for any of the purposes 
enumerated in' this paragraph, must, of course, act within the linii- 
tations above specified in those cities in which mupiicipal officers 
exercise the authority to purchase real property for educational 
needs under statutes in operation previous to June 8, 1917. 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS 3OI 



SCHOOL BUILDINGS 



Authority of Board of Education. — A board of education has 
authority to repair, remodel, improve, or enlarge school buildings 
or other buildings used for educational purposes and under the 
control and management of such board. A board of education 
also possesses the authority to purchase school buildings and to con- 
struct new buildings. A board must exercise this power within the 
limitations expressed in the law. The limitations in these respects 
are, similar to the limitations of the power of the board in acquiring 
real property for sites and other school purposes. If the common 
council, the board of estimate and apportionment, and the board of 
contract and supply, and the commissioner of public works^ or other 
city officials, or any one or more of such officials in a city of the 
second class possess the authority to exercise any of these powers in 
relation to school buildings under the statutes in force previous to 
June 8, 1917, such municipal officers have the right to continue to 
exercise such powers. 

2. A board of education is the authority to determine the neces- 
sity for additional school buildings or the repair or improvement of 
existing buildings. When additional accommodations of this char- 
acter are needed, the board of education should adopt a resolution 
specifying in detail the necessity for such accommodations and 
making an estimate of the amount of funds necessary for such 
purpose. The expense incurred may be paid from the funds avail- 
able for such purposes. If no funds are available for such pur- 
poses, the amount may be included in the next annual budget. The 
board may include such amount in the special budget if one is issued. 
In a city in which any one or more of the muicipal officers or boards 
above enumerated have the power to erect school buildings, remodel 
them, etc., no such building may be erected or remodeled or en- 
larged until the plans and specifications therefor are approved by 
the board of education. Under the provisions of the new city 
school law ordinary repairs to school buildings in all cities of the 
State are under the direction of the board of education, and such 
repairs should be made by the board of education and not by munici- 
pal authorities. 

3, In the city of Buffalo the board of education may in its dis- 
cretion adopt a regulation providing that plans and specifications for 
the construction of new buildings shall be delivered to the council, 



302 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

and such council may in its discretion award a contract for the 
erection of such building under the same terms and conditions that 
contracts in that city are awarded for the construction of municipal 
buildings. 

Title to Property. — When a board of education purchases real 
property for school purposes it should take title to such property in 
the name of the city, or it may take such title in the name of the 
board of education of the city of 

Condemnation of Property. — When a board of education or 
municipal officers authorized to acquire property for school pur- 
pose are unable to agree with the owners of such property on the 
price thereof, such property may be taken for this public purpose in 
various ways. It may be taken under the provisions of the con- 
demnation law, or it may be taken as real property is taken for 
other public purposes under the provisions of the city charter or 
the provisions of any special statute authorizing proceedings to 
acquire title by right of eminent domain. In those cities in which 
the common council, the board of contract and supply, or other city 
officers or body possessed the legal authority previous to June 8, 
1917, to acquire title to real property for school purposes, such 
officers or body continue to exercise these powers under the present 
law. 

Sale of School Property. — When a school site or a school build- 
ing or other real property used for educational, purposes and under 
the control and management of a board of education is no longer 
needed for educational purposes, the board of education should 
notify the common council, and in a city having no common coun- 
cil the board of education should notify the council or the com- 
missioner of the sinking fund. The common council, the council, 
or the commissioners of the sinking fund, as the case may be, have 
the authority and it is their duty to sell or dispose of such property 
in the same manner as such bodies are authorized to sell or dispose 
of other real property owned by the city. The proceeds of the 
salfe of such real property should be credited to the funds under the 
control and adnimsitration of the board of education unless the 
practice in a city, under previous statutes, required other disposi- 
tion of such funds. ; In certain cities the law required the proceeds 
of the sale of such property to be credited to the sinking fund estab- 
lished in such city. In -such cities the proceeds of the sale of such 
property must continue under present law to be paid into the sink- 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS 303 

ing fund. In the city of Buffalo the council may by resolution 
authorize the use of the proceeds of such sale for other municipal 
purposes, and in a city having a board of estimate and apportionment 
such board may also by resolution authorize the use of the proceeds 
of the sale of such property for other municipal purposes. 

TAX ELECTION 

The law authorizes a tax election in a city having a population of 
less than 75,000. The board of education may call such election 
by giving notice thereof as notice is required under the provisions 
of the education law^ for an annual school election. The purpose 
of this election is to permit the qualified voters to determine whether 
or not an expenditure in excess of $25,000 for the construction of 
new buildings, for repairing and remodeling existing buildings, or 
for the purchase of sites, addition to sites, or other real property 
for educational purposes shall be made. The provisions of law gov- 
erning annual school elections, appointment of inspectors, notices 
of meetings, qualifications of voters, challenges, hours for keeping 
poles open, penalties, canvass of votes, filing returns, furnishing bal- 
lots, etc., must apply to and govern the tax election in a city, except 
one in which the election of members of the board of education 
is held at the general or municipal election. In such a city the law 
applying to and governing such general or municipal elections shall 
apply to and govern such tax elections.^ 

This tax election may be called even if there has not been included 
in the annual estimate an item for this specific purpose. The object 
of this tax election is to give the people of the city the opportunity 
to determine whether or not such appropriation shall be made. If 
favorable action is taken on the proposition the amount authorized 
to be expended must be included in the estimate and also in the 
budget. 

ANNUAL ESTIMATE — BUDGET — BONDS, ETC. 

I. In enacting the provisions of the city school law relating to 
fi^nancing school systems, preparing budgets, collecting taxes, etc., 
it was not the intention to change the existing practice in any city 
in the State. It was the intention to so word the language of this 
law that in cities where municipal officers exercise authority in 
determining the amount of funds to be used for school purposes, 
they shall co;ntinue to exercise those powers, and that boards of 



304 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

education having independent power in raising fiinds for school 
purposes should continue to exercise such powers. The one excep- 
tion to this general principle was in the case of the city of New 
York. The law was intentionally framed to confer upon the school 
board of that city the power to obtain sufficient funds for the 
general operating expenses of the school system irrespective of the 
action of municipal oncers. 

2. The board of education of each city in the State is required 
to prepare an annual estimate of the funds which such board deems 
necessary for the maintenance and operation of the school system 
for the current or ensuing year. In the city of New York this 
estimate must be filed on or before the first day of September. In 
all other cities of the State such estimate must be filed at the same 
time and in the same manner as the departments or officers of the 
city government are required to file their estimate for city depart- 
ments or city officers. 

3. The law divides the purposes for which a budget shall be pre- 
pared into three general subjects. In the first is to be included 
what may be called the salary schedule or personal services ; in the 
second are to be included the funds which are necessary for inci- 
dental and contingent expenses for the operation of the school 
system ; in the third are to be included such items as are necessary 
for remodeling or enlarging buildings, construction of new huildings, 
purchase of real property, etc. The exact laiiguage of the law is as 
follows : 

a. The salary of the superintendent of schools, associate, district 
or other superintendents, examiners, directors, supervisors, princi- 
pals, teachers, lecturers, special instructors, auditors, medical in- 
spectors, nurses, attendance officers, clerks and janitors and the 
salary, fees or compensation of all other employees appointed or 
employed by said board of education. 

b. The other necessary incidental and contingent expenses includ- 
ing ordinary repairs to buildings and the purchase of fuel and light, 
supplies, textbooks, school apparatus, books, furniture and fixtures 
and other articles and service necessary for the proper maintenance, 
operation and support of the schools, libraries and other educational, 
social or recreational affairs and interests under its management and 
direction. The provisions of this section in regard to the purchase 
of light shall riot apply to a city having a population of one million 
or more. 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS 305 

c. The remodeling or enlarging of buildings under its control and 
management, the construction of new buildings for uses authorized 
by this chapter and the furnishing and equipment thereof, the 
purchase of real property for new sites, additions to present sites, 
playgrounds or recreation centers and other educational or social 
purposes, and to meet any other indebtedness or liability incurred 
under the provisions of this chapter or other statutes, or any other 
expenses which the board of education is authorized to incur, 

ACTION ON ESTIMATE 

1. In a city which had, according to the State census of 1915^ a 
population of less than 50,000, the estimate of the board of educa- 
tion must be filed with the clerk of the common council. The com- 
mon council in such cities, with the exceptions which are hereafter 
stated, is required to include in its next annual tax and assessment 
roll of the city the amount stated in this estimate as necessary for 
operating the schools, and to collect such amount in the same man- 
ner that other city taxes are collected. 

2. In certain cities of the .State the law authorized the assessment 
and collection of school taxes in a separate assessment roll, separate 
and distinct from the tax roll for other municipal purposes. In 
such cities the board of education will continue to assess and collect 
its taxes for school purposes as in former years. In a city in which 
the school district and the city boundaries are not coterminous the 
board of education issues a separate tax list and collects its taxes 
for school purposes. If the boundaries are later made identical 
the taxes must then be raised by the city at the same time and in 
the same manner that city taxes are raised. 

3. If the amount called for in the estimate for the remodeling and 
enlarging of buildings, construction of new buildings, furnishing 
and equipment of buildings, purchase of real property, etc., as 
enumerated in subdivision C of section 877, is in excess of $25,000, 
in a city having a population of less than fifty thousand, either the 
common council or the board of education may call a tax election 
and permit the voters of the city to determine whether or not the 
proposition for the expenditure of such sum shall be raised by one 
tax upon the property of the city or whether it shall be raised in 
installments and the funds provided by the issuance of bonds. In 
a city of this kind, where the board of education is appointed or 

20 



306 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

elected at a general or municipal election, the vote upon such propo- 
tion must be at either a general or municipal election. In other 
cities of this class such vote may be at a general or special school 
election. 

4. (a) If a common council possessed the power under former 
statutes in a city of the third class to determine the amount of funds 
which shall be appropriated for the support and maintenance of pub- 
lic schools, such common council may continue to exercise the 
same power over the estimate submitted to it for school purposes. 

(b) There is a provision in the city school law to the effect that 
nothing in that act shall be construed as conferring upon the com- 
mon council of a city power or authority in determining the amount 
of tax to be raised for school purposes which the statutes in exist- 
ence prior thereto did not confer upon such common council. 

5. (a) If a mayor possessed the power under previous statutes 
to veto items in a school estimate, or to reduce items, or to take any 
other action in connection with the estimate for school purposes, the 
mayor is to continue to exercise such power. 

(b) In cases where the mayor may reduce or eliminate an item 
in the estimate, he is required to return such estimate to the board 
of education and must state his reasons for the action taken. This 
statement must be filed by him within ten days after receiving the 
estimate. The board of education may then reconsider the estimate 
and, by a three-fourths vote, restore the items either reduced or 
eliminated by the mayor. The restored items must then be included 
in the tax levy of the city for school purposes, 

6. (a) The board of estimate and apportionment in certain cities 
of the second class possessed power under previous statutes to 
determine the amount of funds which should be appropriated for 
the support and maintenance of schools. These cities are Albany, 
Binghamton, Schenectady, Syracuse, Troy and Yonkers. The 
same authority was conferred under previous laws upon the board 
of estimate and apportionment of the city of Rochester. This 
practice is continued in such cities under the present law. The 
estimate of the board of education in these cities must, therefore, 
be filed with the mayor. The mayor must then place such estimate 
before the board of estimate and apportionment at the same time 
and in the same manner that estimates from the city departments or 
officers are placed before such board of estimate and apportion- 
ment. The estimate then becomes a part of the general estimated 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS ' 307 

expenses for the operation of all city affairs and is subject to the 
same consideration, action, and procedure as the estimates of other 
departments. The board of estimate in such cities may increase, 
diminish, or reject any item contained in said estimate except for 
fixed charges for which the city is liable. When the estimate is 
adopted by the board of estimate and apportionment, that body 
must fil^it with the common council. 

(b) The question is naturally raised as to what is meant by 
" fixed charges for which the city is liable." Bonds issued for 
school purposes may mature, and an item included to meet the pay- 
ment thereof is, therefore, properly in the estimate of the board 
of education. This is a fixed charge for which the city is liable 
and which the city has already authorized. The board of estimate 
and apportionment could hot reduce or eliminate this item. In some 
cities a salary schedule has been adopted, and teachers have in all 
cities permanent tenure. Provision must be made for the salary of 
these teachers. In such cases the board of estimate and apportion- 
ment may not reduce the amount included in the estimate of the 
■board of education for salaries of teachers. There are many other 
items of this kind which are liabilities already incurred, either under 
the statute, or by action of the school authorities or the municipal 
authorities pursuant to provisions of law, and in such cases the 
board of estimate and apportionment have not legal power to reduce 
or eliminate these items. 

7. In the other cities of the second class not included in paragraph 
6, the board of education is required to file its estimate with the 
mayor. The common council and the mayor of the city have not 
authority to reduce any of the items in this estimate. The amount 
of such estimate must be included by the common council in the tax 
and assessment roll of the city ; such amount must be collected and 
placed to the credit of the board of education. The law provides, 
however, that a tax for new construction or any of the purposes 
specified in paragraph c of subdivision i of section 877 shall be 
levied payable in installments and that bonds shall be issued as pro- 
vided in the city school law. 

8. In the city of Buffalo the estimate must be filed with the officer 
authorized in that city to receive department estimates of the city. 
This estimate is acted on by the city officer and the council in the 
same manner and with the same effect as city department estimates. 
The common council has discretionary power to include in the 



308 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

budget a sum, for the construction of new buildings, the remodel- 
ing, repairing, and enlargement of existing buildings, addition to 
sites, playgrounds, recreation centers, and any other educational 
purpose. The council must include the sum which has been author- 
ized for any of these purposes by a tax election. After the budget 
has been properly adopted the council shall include the amount 
thereof in the tax and assessment roll of the city, and such amount 
must be collected in the same manner and at the same time as other 
taxes of the city are collected, and the amount collected for educa- 
tional purposes must be placed to the credit of the board of 
education. 

9. (a) The estimate for the. city of New York must be filed with 
the board of estimate and apportionment. The board of education 
in its estimate of school funds may include an amount equivalent to 
or less than nine and four-tenths mills on every dollar of assessed 
valuation of the real and personal property in the city liable to tax- 
ation. The board of estimate and apportionment has no discretion 
in considering the estimate of the board of education for this amount. 
An amount equal to this tax on the property of the city must be 
included in the budget for the city of New York. The board of 
education, however, may include an amount for school purposes in 
excess of such rate. On this amount the board of estimate and 
apportionment has discretionary power. It may, or may not, allow 
such excess amount. It may allow only part of such amount. Any 
amount called for in the budget beyond the rate of four and nine- 
tenths mills is subject to the same consideration and action by the 
board of estimate, and apportionment, the board of aldermen, and 
the mayor, as that' taken upon the departmental estimates of the 
city. The board of estimate and apportionment in the city of New 
York is authorized, however, to make additional appropriations for 
educational purposes beyond the rate of four and nine-tenths mills 
or in addition to the estimate submitted by the board of education. 

(b) The school funds of the city of New York are divided into 
two parts and known as the general school fund and the special 
school fund. The general school fund consists of moneys raised 
for the payment of the salaries of persons employed in the super- 
vising and teaching staff, including the superintendent of schools, 
the associate, "district, and other superintendents, members of the 
board of examiners, attendance officers, supervisor of lectures, lec- 
turers, and director and assistant director of the division of refer- 



CITY SCHOOL SYSTEMS 3O9 

ence and research. The general school fund must be raised in bulk 
and for the city at large. The special school fund includes all 
moneys not comprised in the general school fund as above outlined. 

(c) There is a special provision in the law which confers upon 
the board of education of the city of New York the power to admin- 
ister all moneys appropriated or available for educational purposes 
in that city. This power, however, is subject to the provisions of 
law relative to the audit and payment of salaries and other claims 
by the department of finance. 

10. In certain cities of the State the former statutes provided that 
the amount appropriated for the support and maintenance of public 
schools of the city should not be less than a per capita sum specified 
therein. This sum was based upon the number of pupils enrolled in 
the public schools. In all such cities the amount included in the 
estimate of school expenditures under the present law shall not be 
less than the per capita sum specified in such previous laws. 

SPECIAL ESTIMATE 

To meet emergencies which may arise, a b'0ard of education may 
submit a special estimate to obtain funds to meet extraordinary 
expenses. This special estimate must contain a full statement of 
the reasons why such estimate is submitted and the necessity there- 
for. The same method of procedure must be followed in the con- 
sideration and adoption of such estimate in the several cities o'i the 
State as is followed in such cities in the consideration and action 
upon the regular annual estimates. The common council is author- 
ized to make appropriations requested in the special estimate of a 
board of education. 



BORROWING FUNDS FOR SCHOOL NEEDS 

1. In a city of the third class the common council may temporarily 
borrow the amount appropriated for school purposes on city cer- 
tificates of indebtedness by the issuance of revenue bonds or other 
municipal bonds. Such certificates or bonds shall be payable at such 
time and in such manner as are provided by general laws or the city 
charter for other certificates of indebtedness or revenue bonds. 

2. In a city of the second class the board of estimate and appor- 
tionment may borrow funds under the same procedure as in cities 



3IO NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

of the third class. In the city of Buffalo funds for such purpose 
raay also be borrowed by the council of that city. 

CUSTODY OF SCHOOL FUNDS 

1. The law contemplates that all moneys intended for the support 
and maintenance of schools shall be paid into the city treasury, 
credited to the board of education, and used for the purposes for 
which they were raised. 

2. The only authority to disbu-rse such funds is the board of edu- 
cation. These funds may be paid upon written orders drawn on 
the city treasurer or other fiscal officer of the city. The orders must" 
be signed by the superintendent of schools and the secretary of the 
board of education unless other officers are authorized to sign orders 
by the board of education. These orders must be numbered con- 
secutively and they shall specify the purpose for which the funds 
are drawn and the person or corporation to whom such funds are 
payable. 

3. The law prohibits the city treasurer or other officer having the 
custody of these funds to permit their use for any purpose other 
than that for which ihey are lawfully authorized. These funds 
shall be paid out on the audit of the board of education and the 
counter-signature of the comptroller, and in a city having no comp- 
troller, by an officer designated by the officer or body having the 
control of the financial affairs of such city. 

4. The board of education may make such classification of its 
funds and accounts as it may desire for its own use. It mu.st also 
make such further classification of the funds under its control and 
disbursement as the comptroller of the city or the other officer or 
body having general control of the financial affairs of such city shall 
require. The board of education must also furnish such informa- 
tion in relation to these funds and their disbursement as the comp- 
troller or financial officer of the city requests. 

ISSUANCE OF BONDS 

I. In the city of New York the board of estimate and apportion- 
ment may in its discretion annually cause to be raised such sums of 
money as may be needed for the construction of new buildings, the 
remodeling or enlarging of existing buildings, the acquisition of 
new sites, additional sites, or real property for other educational 
purposes. This money must be raised in the manner provided in 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 3II 

the charter of the city of New York for raising money for such 
purposes. 

2. In the city of Buffalo the council may, by vote of four-fifths 
of its members, authorize the issuance of bonds to meet the expense 
of the construction, improvement, and equipment of school buildings 
and the purchase or acquisition of school sites, the expense of which 
has not been included in the budget. These bonds shall be issued 
in such amounts and payable at such times and places and bear such 
rates of interest as the council may determine. The interest shall 
not exceed six per centum per annum, and it shall be paid semi- 
annually. Such bonds shall not be issued for more than fifty years 
from their date and shall not be sold for less than their par value 
and accrued interest. Such bonds must be made payable in equal 
proportions during the number of years for which they are issued. 
These bonds must be sold by the authorities of the city in the same 
manner that bonds for other municipal purposes are issued and 
sold. The proceeds of the Sjale of such bonds must be paid into 
the city treasury and credited to the board of education. As these 
bonds mature the authorities of the city must include in the tax 
levied and assessed on the property of the city the amount necessary 
to pay such bonds and interest thereon. 

3. In the cities of the second class and in the city of Rochester 
the common council and the board of estimate and apportionment 
has the power to determine upon the necessity of issuing bonds for 
the construction of new buildings, repairing and remodeling of exist- 
ing buildings, acquisition of sites, addition to sites and real property 
for other educational purposes. The municipal authorities are re- 
quired to issue such bonds when these bonds have been authorized. 

4. In all other cities of the State when the common council or 
voters of th^ city authorize an appropriation to be raised by a tax 
in installments for the construction of new buildings, repairing and 
remodeling existing buildings, for school sites, addition to sites, or 
the acquisition of real property for other educational purposes, city 
bonds shall be issued in the same manner and under the same pro- 
visions as bonds are issued by such city for other purposes. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

State the general change recently made in the law regulating city school 
systems. What is the controlling body of a city school system? Who is 
eligible to hold such office? How many members must a city board of 



312 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

education contain? How many members on the board of education in New 
York City? How is a board having more than nine members reduced to 
the required number? What is the requirement for cities hereafter organ- 
ized? Explain fully how members of a 'board of education are chosen in 
different cities? In what city may they be chosen from a subdivision of a 
city? Why? What is the term of a member in the City of New York? In 
Albany? Troy? In the other cities of the State? When is the first board 
to be appointed in New York? By whom? How are the terms of the 
members of the first board designated? When is a board to be appointed 
in Buffalo? How is a board reorganized in a city having more than nine 
members and such members are appointed by the mayor? How is a board 
reorganized in a city having more than nine members when the members are 
elected? How are vacancies filled which expire other than by expiration of 
a term in a city in which members of the board are elected? How are such 
vacancies filled in a city in which the members are appointed by the mayor? 
When is the annual meeting of the board? How often must regular meetings 
be held? How may special meetings be held? What is the general inten- 
tion of the law in conferring power on the board of education? Specify 
ten general powers and duties of the board of education? What general 
power is given the board in relation to the school organization? Specify 
two limitations to the power of the board in awarding contracts. What city 
has a, local board school district? What organization has that district? 
How is such organization created? Specify eight powers and duties of such 
local board. How are the expenses of this board met? What special 
function has the secretary of the board? 

In what city is a fixed term given superintendents? What is the term of 
office in other cities? How may a superintendent be removed? How may 
one resign? What qualifications must a person possess to be eligible to the 
office of superintendent? What limitations are placed upon the powers and 
duties of the city superintendent? Specify seven general powers and duties 
conferred by law upon a city superintendent. Explain the organization of 
the board of superintendents in New York City. Specify nine powers and 
duties conferred by law upon a board of superintendents. Compare the 
functions of such board with the functions of a city superintendent. What 
additional powers must such board exercise? What other superintendents 
may be provided for a city school system? How? What probationary term 
must such superintendent serve? How may such superintendent be removed? 
What is the tenure of office of such superintendent? What city must have 
a board of examiners? How many members on such board? How are 
such members appointed? What restriction is placed upon such board? 
What probationary term must they serve? What is their tenure thereafter? 
Specify five powers and duties of such board. Who are included under the 
term " Teaching Staff ? " How are members of such staff appointed ? What 
is the requirement in New York City? In Buffalo? How is an eligible list 
estabHshed? May such list be merged? For what period of time is such 
list valid? Who is entitled to be placed upon such list? What certificate 
or license -must each hold? Who prescribes the minimum requirements? 
By what methods are additional qualifications prescribed? What S the 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 3I3 

probationary term of employment? By whom fixed? How may a member 
of such staff be dismissed during probation period? Thereafter? By what 
method does a member of such staff receive permanent appointment? How 
is the salary regulated? What other employees may the system contain? 
What is the requirement as to a person holding a position on June 2, 1917? 
How may such person be removed? What is the requirement when a person 
is removed? What eligible list is created? When is a person entitled to be 
placed upon such list? What employees are required to give bonds? When 
are such bonds prescribed by the municipal authorities? When by school 
authorities ? 

Who has authority to purchase sites? What limitation is there to this 
authority? What is the procedure when a site is necessary? How may 
funds be obtained for the purchase of the same? Who has the sole authority 
to designate sites for school buildings in a city? What authority has the 
board of education over the construction, repair and remodeling of school 
buildings or other buildings under their control? What exception is there 
to this general power? Explain fully who determines the need of new 
school buildings? Repairs to buildings? What is the procedure? How are 
funds obtained? Who possesses the authority to make ordinary school 
repairs? By whom must all plans and specifications for the repair, improve- 
ment or construction of school buildings be approved? What discretionary 
power has the board of education in the Ci,ty of Buffalo on the construction 
of school buildings? Who takes title to property for school purposes? By 
whom may property be condemned for school purposes? Explain the 
different processes? Who has authority to sell school property? Explain 
the process in different cities? Who may call a tax election? When? For 
what purpose? How? What law controls the election? 

What was the general intent in arranging the financial control of city 
school systems? Who prepares the estimate? When? With whom must it 
be filed in New York City? In other cities? Name the three general 
outlines under which the estimate is classified? What may be included in 
the a class? In the b class? In the c class? What action is taken on such 
estimate in cities having a population of 50,000 or less? In what cities may 
a separate independent tax list be issued? What special action may be 
taken on an estimate in excess of $25,000? What power has a common 
council over such estimate? Is it the intention of the law to give such body 
increased powers? What power has the mayor in certain cities? How 
must the mayor proceed to exercise such power? What body has power 
over the appropriations in certain cities of the second class? Name these 
cities? Explain the procedure in such cases? What is meant by "fixed 
charges for which the city is liable?" Give illustrations. What action iS 
taken in other cities of the second class on such estimates? Explain the 
procedure in the City of Buffalo. Explain the requirement in the City of 
New York? What divisions are made of the New York City school funds? 
Define each. What is the requirement as to a per capita fund in certain 
cities? When may a special estimate be submitted? How? How may 
cities of the third class borrow funds for school needs? A city of the 
second class? Who is the custodian of city school funds? By whose order 



314 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

may such funds be disbursed ? What is the procedure ? What is the limita- 
tion as to the use of such funds? What classification must a board of 
education make of its funds? How may additional funds be raised in New 
York City for the construction of buildings, etc.? How may bonds be issued 
in Buffalo ? How may bonds be issued in cities of the second class^? In the 
third class? 



CHAPTER XXXIII 

CITY SCHOOL ELECTIONS 

[Article 7-a, Chapter 791, Laws erf 1917] 

To What Cities Applicable. — In those cities of the State in 
which members of the board of education are elected by the quali- 
fied voters at a special election such election must be held as pro- 
vided in this chapter. Cities which elect the members of^their 
board of education at either the general election or a municipal elec- 
tion do not hold their elections in accordance with these provisions. 
Those cities in which the school district extends beyond the bounda- 
ries of the city and who hold their election at the time of the annual 
school election in union free school districts in the month of August 
are not required to hold their elections in accordance with these 
provisions. 

Date of Annual Election. — The annual election in all cities to 
which the provisions of this chapter apply shall be held on the first 
Tuesday in May in each year. 

Polls Open. — The law requires that the polls of such election 
shall be open from 12 o'clock noon until 8 o'clock in the evening. 

Election Districts.— On or before the first day of April, 1918, 
the board of education of each city to which this law applies is 
required to adopt a resolution dividing the city into school election 
districts. Each school election district shall contain not more than 
1,000 qualified voters. Such districts shall be so arranged, if pos- 
sible, that there shall be a schoolhouse in each of such school 
election districts. The resolution designating these districts should 
accurately describe the boundaries of such districts by streets, alleys 
and highways. When possible to do so the boundaries of a school 
election district should include one or more of the regular election 
districts of the city. The districts thus formed shall continue in 
existence until modified by resolution of the board of education. 

Where Election Shall Be Held. — All school elections, so far as 
possible, shall be held in a public schoolhouse. If there is a school 
election district in which there is no schoolhouse the board of edu- 

315 



3l6 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

cation shall by resolution designate some other building where the 
election in such district shall be held. 

Notice of Election. — The board of education must give notice 
of the annual school election. This notice may be given by publish- 
ing the same at least once each week for four weeks preceding each 
election 'in at least two newspapers published in the city. The 
notice must state the day of the election and the hours during which 
the polls will be open. This notice should also accurately describe 
the boundaries of the school election districts into which the city is 
divided. It should also name the school house, or other place in 
the city, v/here these elections will be held. The notice should state 
at what place the poll lists prepared by the clerk of the board of 
education are on file and that the same may be examined at the 
office of the clerk of the board or the superintendent of the city. 

Qualifications of Voters. — A person shall be entitled to vote 
at a school election in such city who is : 

1. A citizen of the United States. 

2. Twenty-one years of age. 

3. A resident within the election district for a period of thirty 
days next preceding the election at which he offers to vote ; and who 
in addition thereto possesses one of the' following four qualifications : 

a. Owns or hires real property in such district or is in the pos- 
session of such property under a contract of purchase, assessed upon 
the last preceding assessment-roll of the city, or 

b. Is the parent of a child of school age, provided such child shall 
have attended the public schools in the city in which the election is 
held for a period of at least eight weeks during the year preceding 
such election, or 

c. Not being the parent, has permanently residing with him a 
child of school age who shall have attended such public schools for 
a period of at least eight weeks during the year preceding such 
election, or 

d. Owns personal property, assessed on the last preceding assess- 
ment-roll of the city, exceeding fifty dollars in value, exclusive of 
such as is exempt from execution. 

No person shall be deemed to be ineligible to vote at any such 
election, by reason of sex, who has the other qualifications required 
by this section. 

Poll List. — The clerk of the board of education Is required to 
prepare a poll list for each school election district in the city on 



CITY SCHOOL ELECTIONS . 317 

or before the first day of April in each year. This hst shall contain 
the names of all persons residing in such district who are qualified 
to vote for the office of members of the board of -education at the 
ensuing election. The names on this list must be arranged alpha- 
betically by their surnames and their place of residence by street 
or number of each person must also be given. If the residence 
may not be given so specifically, there must be some description 
accurately locating the place of residence of each person. 

Poll List Filed. — This poll list must be filed in the office of 
the clerk of the board of education, or some other accessible place 
designated by the board of education. Arrangements must be made 
so that such list may be examined by any person interested therein 
during the office hours of the clerk of the board for thirty days 
preceding the annual school election. It must also be open to 
examination from 4 to 8 o'clock in the evening of each Friday and 
Saturday of the four 'weeks immediately preceding the election. 
The clerk of the board, or some person designated by the board, 
shall be present at the office of the clerk at such hours and shall 
permit such list to be examined by the public. 

Additional Names Placed Upon List. — If a person whose name 
is not upon the list appears before the clerk of the board of educa- 
tion and files a written statement with such clerk, giving in such 
statement his name, residence, occupation, the school election district 
in which he resides, and specifies the qualifications which entitle him 
to vote, such clerk must place his name upon the poll list. 

Transfer of Name to Poll List of Another District. — If the 
name of a qualified voter appears upon the poll list of a school 
election district and such voter is a resident of another school elec- 
tion district, such voter should make a written statement setting 
forth such facts, showing his correct residence and his name. 
Thereupon the clerk should strike his name from such poll list and 
place it upon the proper poll list. 

Revision of List — Challenges to be Received. — The clerk of 
the board of education, or other person designated by the board, 
must on the Monday preceding the annual election correct and 
revise each of the duplicate poll lists for the several election dis- 
tricts of the city by striking therefrom and inserting in their proper 
places the names of persons who have filed the statement above 
required. Such clerk shall also receive challenges, which may be 
made in writing, by any qualified voter against the right of any 



3l8 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

person on such poll list to vote at the election. Such clerk shall also 
indicate on such poll lists the persons whose qualifications as voters 
have been challenged. 

Filing Corrected List. — The revised and corrected poll list 
must be filed in the office of the clerk of the board of education. 
Such' board shall cause a copy of the list of each election district 
to be delivered on the day of the election, before the opening of 
the polls therein, to the inspectors of each district at the place where 
the election in such district is to be held. 

Blanks, etc. — It is the duty of the board of education to furnish 
all necessary blanks to enable voters to, prepare any of the statements 
required in connection with their right to vote, the district in which 
they reside, and on which written challenges may be made. 

Appointment of Inspectors. — At least ten days prior to each 
school election the board of education shall designate three qualified 
voters of each school election district to act as inspectors of election. 
The clerk of the board of education is required to give a written 
notice of appointment to the persons so designated. If a person 
appointed an inspector refuses to accept such appointment, or fails 
to serve, the board may appoint a qualified voter of the school 
election district to fill the vacancy. 

Additional Inspectors. — When the board of education believes 
that existing circumstances require the services of additional in- 
spectors such board may appoint not to exceed two additional 
inspectors of election for each election district. 

Organization of Inspectors. — Before opening the polls in a 
school election dsitrict the inspectors must organize by electing one 
of their number as chairman and one as poll clerk. 

Compensation. — Each inspector is entitled to receive for his 
services a compensation of $3, to be paid out of the school funds 
in the same manner as other claims against the school board are 
audited and paid. 

Nomination of Candidates. — Candidates for members of boards 
of education in cities shall be nominated by petition directed to 
the board of education. Such petition must be signed by at least 
thirty persons qualified to vote at school elections in the city. 
The petition must also contain the names and residences of the 
candidates to be voted upon at the election, and such petition must 
state whether such candidates are nominated for full terms or for 
unexpired portions of terms. These petitions must be filed with 



. CITY SCHOOL ELECTIONS 3-19 

the clerk of the board of education at least ten days before the day 
of the annual election. * 

Ballots. — Printed official ballots containing the names of candi- 
dates nominated shall be provided by the board of education. 
These ballots shall show whether the candidates are nominated for 
full terms or for unexpired terms. The names of candidates must 
be arranged alphabetically according to their surnames. Blank 
spaces must be provided so that voters may vote for candidates 
who have not been nominated. The form of the ballot must con- 
form substantially to the form of ballot used at general elections. 
The expense of the preparation of such ballots must be met by the 
board of education. Instructions as to the marking of the ballots 
and the number of candidates for which a vote is permitted must 
be printed on the ballots. These ballots must be delivered to the 
inspectors in each election district on the day of the annual election. 
The number of ballots printed must equal at least the number of 
qualified voters in the district. 

Failure to Use Official Ballot. — If official ballots are not fur- 
nished as required in the foregoing paragraph and the election is 
otherwise held, such election need not be declared invalid or illegal 
because the ballots used did not conform to the above requirements ; 
provided, however, the intent of the voter may be ascertained from 
the use of the irregular or defective ballots and such use was not 
fraudulent and did not substantially affect the result of the election. 

Use of Voting Machines. — In a city in which voting machines 
are used at general or municipal elections it shall be legal for the 
board of education of such city to authorize the use of such machines 
at the school election. When machines are thus used the law regu- 
lating the use of machines at a general or municipal election shall 
apply to and govern the use of such machines at the school election. 

Conduct of Election. — School elections must be conducted so 
far as may be possible in accordance with the provisions of the law 
governing general elections. It is the duty of the board of educa- 
tion to provide ballot boxes for each school election district. Two 
boxes should be provided — on^ to contain the ballots voted, and 
the other to contain the rejected or defective ballots. The board of 
education should also provide booths, and voters should be required 
to enter such booths for the purpose of marking their ballots. The 
ballots presented to the inspector must be folded so as to conceal 
the names of the candidates voted for. All persons entitled to vote. 



320 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

who are in the place where the election is held, shall be required 
to cast their ballots before the polls are closed. Inspectors must 
keep the poll list containing the name and address o£ each qualified 
voter voting either for candidates or upon other propositions before 
the election for consideration. 

Challenge of Voters. — All persons named upon the poll list as 
having been challenged prior to the day of election must also be 
challenged at the election before they are given ballots to vote. A 
qualified voter of the school election district may challenge the 
right of a person to vote at the time he requests a ballot. Any per- 
son thus challenged must be afforded the opportunity to make the 
oath prescribed in section 216 of the Education Law. If a person 
challenged so swears or affirms, his vote must be received. If he 
refuses to so swear or affirm he shall not be given a ballot or per- 
mitted to vote. Y 

Penalty for Falsely Swearing or Illegally Voting. — i. A per- 
son who wilfully swears or affirms falsely as to his right to vote at 
a school election after being challenged, is guilty of perjury and may 
be punished in accordance with the provisions of the penal law for 
the commission of such crime. 

2. A person who is not qualified to vote at a school election, but 
who shall vote at such election, although not challenged, is guilty 
of a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of not less than $25 or by 
imprisonment of not less than thirty days, or by both such fine and 
imprisonment. 

Canvass of Votes. — i. As soon as the polls of the election close 
the inspectors must count the ballots which are in the box, without 
unfolding them. The number of ballots found in the ballot box 
must be compared with the number of persons recorded on the poll 
list as having voted. If the number of ballots exceed the number of 
names on the poll list such ballots must be replaced, without being 
unfolded, in the ballot box from which they were taken. Such 
ballots must then be thoroughly mingled in such box and one of 
the inspectors designated by the board shall then publicly draw out 
a sufficient number of ballots so as to make the number of ballots 
left in the box equal to the number of names on the poll list. The 
ballots which are drawn out shall not be unfolded, but shall be 
placed in an envelope, which shall be sealed, and indorsed with a 
statement of the number of such excess ballots and signed by the 



CITY SCHOOL ELECTIONS 321 

inspector who withdrew such ballots. This envelope must then be 
placed in the box for defective ballots. 

2. The inspectors shall then count the votes cast for each candi- 
date and shall keep a tally list of the same. Such inspectors shall 
also make a statement showing the names of the candidates receiving 
votes and the number of votes cast for such candidates. They shall 
also make a statement containing the number and a description of 
the ballots which are declared void and also the number of wholly 
blank ballots which are cast. These statements must be signed by 
the inspectors. The ballots which are declared void and not counted 
shall be enclosed in an envelope which shall be sealed and indorsed 
and signed by the inspectors. This envelope must be placed in the 
ballot box containing defective ballots. 

3. After the inspectors have thus counted the ballots and pre- 
pai-ed their statements the ballots shall be replaced in the ballot 
box. Each box shall then be securely locked, sealedj and deposited 
by an inspector chosen for that purpose with the clerk of the 
board of education. The unused ballots shall be placed in a sealed 
package and returned by an inspector designated for that purpose 
to the clerk of the board of education at the same time that the 
ballot boxes are delivered to him. The statement of the canvass of 
the votes shall also be filed with the clerk of the board of education 
on the day following the annual election. 

Canvass by Board of Education. — The board of education is 
required to meet at its usual place at 8 o'clock on the evening of 
the day following an election. Such board should forthwith exam- 
ine and tabulate the statement of the results of the elections in the 
several election districts. The board should also canvass the returns 
as contained in such statements and determine the number of votes 
cast for each candidate. Thereupon the board shall declare the 
result of the canvass. The candidates receiving a plurality of the 
votes cast respectively for the several offices shall be declared elected. 
The clerk of the board of education shall record the result of the 
election as announced by the board. 

Notice to Candidates of Election. — The clerk of the board of 
education shall within twenty-four hours after the result of the elec- 
tion has been declared by the board of education serve written 
notice, either personally or through the mail, upon each person 
declared to be elected a member of the board of education. 

21 



3^2 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

To what cities of the State does the city school election law apply? To 
Tvhat cities does it not apply? What is the date of the annual city school 
election? During what hours must the polls be open? Into what districts 
must a city be divided? When? How many? How must such districts be 
arranged? How must such districts be defined? How may they be modified? 
Where must school elections be held? Who must give notice of annual 
election? How? What information must it contain? What qualifications 
must a person possess to be entitled to vote at such election? Who prepares 
a, poll list? When? What must such list contain? How must the names 
ht arranged? Where must it be filed? When? Who may examine it? 
When? What arrangements must be made therefor? In what way may 
Trtie name of a person omitted from such list be placed on it? How may a, 
name be transferred from the list of one district to that of another? Who 
revises the list? How? How may challenges be made previous to the day 
of election? 

What must be done with the corrected list? When, where and by whom 
are such lists given to inspectors? When and by whom are inspectors of 
election appointed? How many? By whom are they notified? How ar« 
•vacancies filled? Under what conditions may additional inspectors be ap- 
pointed? How do they organize? What compensation do they receive? 
Explain fully how a candidate may be nominated for office. Describe fully 
how ballots must be prepared. To whom are they delivered? When? By 
whom? How many must be printed? 

What effect will the failure to use official ballots have upon an election? 
"When may voting machines be used? How must the election be generally 
conducted ? What ballot boxes must be furnished ? By whom ? Must booths 
he provided? How m-.ist a ballot be folded? Who are entitled to vote after 
the hour set for closing the election? Who may challenge the right of a 
person to vote? Is a written challenge deposited with the clerk of a board 
«f education sufficient? May a person vote whose name is not on the poll- 
list? How? What must a challenged person do in order to vote? What 
penalty may be imposed upon a person who falsely swears in his vote? What 
penalty may be imposed upon a person who is not legally qualified to vote 
but who votes and does not swear in his vote? 

Who canvasses the votes? Describe the method fully. What statements 
must inspectors make? What must be done with these statements, tally 
sheets, etc.? Explain fuljy what must be done with the ballots after the 
canvass is completed by the inspectors. 

What canvass must the board of education make? When? What declara- 
tion should it make? What record must be made? Who notifies the persons 
elected at such election? How? 



CHAPTER XXXIV 

APPEALS TO THE COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION 

[Article 34] 

Who May Appeal. — Any person considering himself aggrieved 
under the provisions of this title of the Education Law may bring 
an appeal to the Commissioner of Education for judicial determina- 
tion. 

Action Appealable. — Any action of a school district meeting, 
of a board of education, of a supervisor in relation to school moneys, 
of a district superintendent or other officer relating to the estab- 
lishment, dissolution, consolidapion, or modification of school dis- 
tricts, or an apportionment of school moneys, or the action of any 
of the foregoing concerning any other matter under the education 
law, or pertaining in any way to the school system, may be reviewed 
by the Commissioner of Education on appeal to him in due form. 

Judicial Authority. — The Commissioner of Education is an 
executive officer, and is also charged with the performance of duties 
which are judicial in character. The administration of the school 
system through local officers and the action of district or town 
school meetings give rise to numerous questions which must be 
settled by some judicial authority. It is important that these numer- 
ous questions shall be settled at an early date and with the least 
expense possible. To meet this situation, the State Legislature has 
conferred upqp the Commissioner of Education the power to hear 
and determine questions of this kind in the same manner that they 
are heard and determined by courts. Many appeals are decided by 
the commissioner each year, and since vesting this power in the 
chief officer of the education system over 11,000 appeals have been 
decided by him. 

Powers of Commissioner. — Under this title of the education 
law the Commissioner of Education is given power to regulate 
the practice under which appeals shalLbe brought under his juris- 
diction. He may render a decision on the law and the facts sub- 
mitted and make any order necessary to give force and effect to his 
decision. 

323 



324 iSTEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

Decision Not Reviewable. — The decision of the Commissioner 
of Education on an appeal brought before him by an aggrieved 
party from any decision made by a district or town school meeting, 
by any district or town school ofiQcer, by a supervisor in relation 
to payment of school moneys, or an appeal brought before him by 
any other official act or decision pertaining to the school system of 
the State, is final and conclusive and cannot be reviewed by any 
court. 

Decision Reviewable. — An original application to the Com- 
missioner of Education to act in a case where no action has been 
taken before, is not an appeal to the Commissioner of Education 
from any decision of an ofificer or body. It is a direct application to 
the commissioner to exercise a power which is original and not 
appellate. An application, therefore, to the conimissioner to remove 
a trustee of a school district is not an appeal in the sense in which 
this term is used in the education law. The action of the commis- 
sioner in a case of this kind was held to be reviewable by the courts. 
(159 N. Y. 162.) 

The law was amended in 1910 providing tha^t the Commissioner 
of Education could institute such proceedings as the education law 
authorizes and that his decision in any such proceeding or in any 
case brought to him for determination on petition or appeal should 
be final and not subject to review. The decision of the commis- 
sioner therefore in a case where he acts originally would seem to be 
final and not reviewable by the courts. 

Rules of Practice. — The Commissioner of Education has pre- 
scribed the following rules to govern the practice on appeals : 

1. Form of appeal. An appeal must be in writing, addressed 
" To the Commissioner of Education," stating the grounds upon 
which it is taken, and signed by the appellant or appellants. The 
appeal must be verified by the oath of the appellant or appellants. 
When the appeal is made by the trustees of a district, it must be 
signed by all the trustees, or a reason must be given for the omission 
of any, verified by the oath of the appellant or of some person 
acquainted with such reason. 

2. Service of appeal and papers. A copy of the appeal, and 
all the statements, maps and papers intended to be presented in 
support of it, with the affidavit in verification of the same, -must 
be served on the officer or officers whose act or decision is com- 
plained of, or some of them ; or if it be from the decision or pro- 



APPEALS TO THE COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION 325 

ceeding of a district meeting, upon the district clerk or one of the 
trustees, whose duty it is to cause information of such appeal to be 
given to the inhabitants who voted for the decision. 

3. Manner of service. Such service must be made by deliver- 
ing a copy of the appeal to the party to be served personally, or, in 
case he cannot be found in the supervisory district in which he 
resides, after due diligence, by delivering and leaving the same at 
his residence, with some person of suitable age and discretion, 
between 6 o'clock in the morning and 9 o'clock in the evening. 

4. Affidavit of service. Immediately after the service of such 
copy the original, together with an affidavit proving the service of 
a copy thereof and stating the time and manner of the service and 
the name and official character of the person upon whom such service 
was made, must be transmitted to the Education Department at 
Albany. 

5. Time of perfecting appeal. Such original appeal and all 
papers, etc., annexed thereto, with proof of service of copies, as 
required by rules 3 and 4, must be sent to the Education Department 
within 30 days after the making of the decision or the performance 
of the act complained of or within that time after the knowledge of 
the cause of complaint came to the appellant, or some satisfactory 
excuse must be rendered in the appeal for the delay. If an answer 
is received to an appeal which has not been transmitted to the 
Department, such appeal will be dismissed. 

6. Answer; when to be made; verification; service. The party 
upon whom an appeal shall be served must, within 10 days from the 
time of such service, unless further time be given by the Commis- 
sionePof Education, on application, answer the same, either by con- 
curring in a statement of facts with the appellant or by a separate 
answer, and of all affidavits, papers, maps, etc., in support thereof. 
Such statement and answer must be signed by all the trustees or 
other officers whose act, omission or decision is appealed from, or 
a good reason, on oath, must be given for the omission of the signa- 
ture of any of them. Such answer must be verified by oath and a 
copy thereof and of all the statements, maps, papers, etc., intended 
to be presented in support thereof, served on the appellants or some 
one of them, in like manner as is provided, in rule 3 for the service 
of a copy of an appeal 

7. Submission of answer to department. Immediately after 
the service of a copy of such answer and the statements, papers, etc., 



326 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

presented in support thereof, the original answer and papers, etc., 
together with an affidavit of the service of such copy and stating 
the time and manner of the service and the name and official 
character of the person upon whom such service was made, as 
hereinbefore provided for the service of a copy of an appeal, must 
be transmitted to the Education Department at Albany. 

8. Reply, replication or rejoinder. No reply, replication or 
rejoinder shall be allowed, except by permission of the Commis- 
sioner of Education ; in which case, such reply, replication and re- 
joinder must be duly verified by oath, and copies thereof served on 
the opposite party. Immediately after the service of such copy, the 
original, together with an affidavit of such service, and stating the 
time and manner of the service, and the name and official character 
of the person upon whom such service was made, must be trans- 
mitted to the Education Department at Albany. 

9. When oath not required. So far as the parties concur in 
a statement, no oath will be required to it. But all facts, maps, or 
papers, not agreed upon by them and evidenced 'by their signature 
on both sides, must be verified by oath. 

10. Who may answer appeal. When any proceeding of a dis- 
trict meeting is appealed from, and when the inhabitants of a dis- 
trict generally are interested in the matter of the appeal, and in all 
cases where an inhabitant might be an appellanti had the decision 
or proceeding been the opposite of that which was made or had, 
any one or more of such inhabitants may answer the appeal, with or 
without the- trustees. 

11. Appeals in relation to alteration, formation or consolidation 
of districts. Where the appeal has relation to the alteration or 
formation of a school district, or the consolidation of two or more 
school districts, it must be accompanied by a map, exhibiting the 
site of the schoolhouse, the roads, the old and new lines of districts, 
the different lots, the particular location and distance from the 
schoolhouses of the persons aggrieved, and their relative distance, 
if there are two or more schoolhouses in question. Unless excused 
by the commissioner there shall also be presented a list of all the 
taxable inhabitants in the district or territory to be affected by the 
question, showing in separate columns the valuation of their prop- 
erty taken from the last assessment roll, and the number of children 
between 5 and 21 belonging to each person, distinguishing the 
districts to which they respectively belong. 



APPEALS TO THE COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION 327 

12. Stay of proceedings. An appeal, of itself, does not stay; 
proceedings. If the party desires such stay he should apply for it 
by petition, stating the facts upon which such stay should be made,, 
duly verified. The Commissioner of Education will grant a stay, 
or not, as in his judgment it may be proper, or may subserve the 
interests of either party or the public, and may direct a copy of the. 
petition to be served on the opposite party, and a hearing on both 
sides before deciding upon the application. 

13. Affidavit of verification. The affidavit of verification, re- 
quired by these rules to an appeal, answer, reply, replication and 
rejoinder, must be to the effect, that the same is true to the knowl- 
edge of the affiant, except as to the matters therein stated to be 
alleged on information and belief, and that as to those matters he 
believes it to be true. 

14. Oaths. All oaths required by these rules may be takeir 
before any person authorized to take affidavits. 

15. Papers to be legibly written. All appeals, petitions and 
other papers therein must be fairly and legibly written ; and if not 
so written, may, in the discretion of the Commissioner of Educa- 
tion be returned to the parties. 

16. Names of parties or attorneys to be indorsed on paper. 
When any party, appellant or respondent, is not represented on the 
appeal by an attorney, the name of such party, with the names of 
the district, town and county and his post-office address must be 
indorsed upon each paper of the party so represented, filed in the 
Department on such appeal ; and, when represented by an attorney, 
the name of such attorney, with the name of the distrist, town and 
county affected and his post-office address, must be so indorsed 
upon each paper of the party so represented, filed in the Department 
on such appeal. 

17. Oral argument; briefs. Submission of appeals may be 
made upon the papers filed therein, with or without oral argument, 
or the filing of briefs, as the Commissioner of Education, upon 
application, may determine. Arguments and hearings in appeals 
and other proceedings pending before the Commissioner of Educa- 
tion may be held before the Deputy Commissioner of Education, 
when authorized by the commissioner. 

18. Decision. The decision of the Commissioner of Education 
in every case will contain the order, or directions, necessary and 
proper for giving effect to his decisions. 



328 NEW YORK SCHOOL LAW 

19. Decision to be filed. A decision upon an appeal will be 
forwarded by the Commissioner of Education to the clerk of the 
school district in which the appeal arose, or to the town clerk of the 
town, when the appeal relates to the alteration of a district in which 
the order appealed from is filed, whose duty it will be to file the 
same in his office as a public record. 

20. Records and reports. The Commissioner of Education 
will, in his discretion, in the determination of an appeal, take into 
consideration any official records or reports on file in the Education 
Department and relating to the issues involved in such appeal. 

REVIEW QUESTIONS 

Who may appeal to the Commissioner of Education? What actions are 
appealable? Why was judicial authority conferred on the Commissioner of 
Education? What general power has the Commissioner in such matters? 
Are his decisions reviewable? Give in substance case 159 N. Y., 162. How 
was this affected by the amendment of 1910? What additional power was 
given the Commissioner of Education in 1910? 



INDEX. 



PAGE 

Academies transferred to trustees 52 

Administration division 14 

Appeals to commissioner of education 323-328 

Arbor day: > 

date of 179 

duty of school authorities 179 

history of 178 

nature poem 179 

program for 179 

state flower 178 

state tree 178 

Athletics, control of 208, 209, 271 

Attendance division 14 

Blind institutions 225 

Board of education: 

admit non-resident pupils 120 

adopt by-laws, regulations 118 

application of township system 108 

annual meeting 1 10 

appoint clerk iii 

appoint collector iii 

appoint superintendent 122 

appoint treasurer iii 

changing number of , 112 

city and village authorities levy taxes 123 

contingent expenses, how settled 123 

control schools .' 120 

corporate body no 

courses of study, provide for 118 

custodian of property 119 

disbursement of money by . . 124, 125 

election of 108 

election of, in districts having three hundred childen 113-116 

eligibility 109 

employ teachers 121 

erect and repair buildings 1 19 

expenses of members of boards attending educational meetings.. 126 

329 



330 INDEX 

Board of education — Continued. page 

fill vancancies in board no, 121 

furniture and apparatus, purchase of 119 

hold real estate in trust 120 

insure school property 119 

issue certificate of indebtedness 126 

keep record of proceedings 122 

levy tax without vote , .-: 123 

may adopt an academy as an academic department 125 

may hire school rooms and furnish them 119 

may lease an academy ? 125 

meetings of 124 

money to be held by city or village treasurer 124 

number of '. 108 

prescribe textbooks , 119 

publish statement of receipts and disbursements 122 

remove members of board no 

remove teachers '. 121 

report estimated expenses 123 

select president of in 

stairways, etc 121 

sites, purchase of 119 

term of 109 

visitation of schools by 124 

waterclosets 121 

who may vote for 112 

Bonds : 

bonds and mortgage 70, 73 

of employees 299 

issue of 73 

sale of 73 

supervisors 4i 

treasurer and collector in union free-school districts m 

validation of • 7^ 

Branch schools / 96 

City school elections: 

additional inspectors 3^8 

additional names placed upon list 3^7 

appointment of inspectors , 3i8 

ballots ■ 319 

blanks, etc 3^8 

canvass by board of education 321 

canvass of votes • 320 

challenge of voters 320 

compensation 3i° 

conduct of election 3i9 

date of annual election « 3^5 



INDEX 



331 



City school elections — Continued. page 

election districts 315 

failure to use official ballot 319 

filing corrected list 318 

nomination of candidates ' 318 

notice of election 316 

notice to candidates of election 321 

organization of inspectors 318 

penalty for falsely swearing or illegally voting 320 

poll list 316 

poll list filed , 317 

polls opeti 315 

qualifications of voters 316 

review questions 322 

revision of list — challenges to be received 317 

to what cities applicable , 315 

transfer of name to poll list of another district 315 

use of voting machines 319 

where election shall be held 315 

City school systems: 

action on estimate 305-308 

annual estimate, budget, bonds, etc 303 

assistant, district and other superintendents 295 

associate superintendent — board of superintendents 293 

general provisions 293 

board of education 284 

contracts 289 

how chosen 285 

local school boards 289 

meetings of board 287 

number of members 284 

powers and duties of board 287 

qualification of members 284 

term of office (when appointed or elected) 285 

vacancies 286 

borrowing fufids for school needs 309 

custody of school funds 310 

general statement 284 

issuance of bonds 310 

review questions 3^^-3^4 

school buildings 30i 

authority of board of education 301 

condemnation of property 302 

sale of school property 302 

title of property 302 

sites 299 

special estimate 309 



332 INDEX 

City school systems — Continued. page 

superintendent of schools — board of superintendents 290 

eligibility 292 

powers and duties 292 

removal .^ 291 

resignation > 292 

term 290 

tax election 303 

teaching staff 296 

bonds of employees 299 

certificate or license 297 

eligible lists 296 

how appointed 296 

ofificers, teachers, etc. (continued) 298 

other employees 298 

salary 298 

term of employment 297 

who are included , 296 

Commissioner of education 11, 17, 22 

administer affidavits 20 

annual reports 20 

arbor day 21 

apportionment of school moneys 21 

chief executive officer 19 

deaf, diimb, and blind institutions 19 

decide appeals 21 

election of 18 

eligibility 18 

enforce compulsory education law 21 

enforce physical education law 21 

examination of teachers 20 

general supervision }9 

historical sketch ' 17 

hold property in trust - 21 

Indian education IQ 

inspection of schools I9 

issue stays, etc • 21 

list of normal graduates 20 

may open schools when authorities refuse to do so 21 

normal schools 21 

powers and duties I9 

prepare registers, etc 20 

prescribe regulations 22 

removal of • ^° 

remove school officers • 20 

revocation of certificates 20 

salary ^° 



INDEX 333 

Commissioner of education — Continued. page 

school libraries 21 

term of office 18 

trustee, etc 19 

Compulsory education: 

attendance officers 188 

attendance upon evening school 184 

character of instruction 185 

commitments, expenses of 190 

definition of terms 183 

duty of parents, etc 185 

employment of children in streets 191-192 

employment certificates 186 

evening school certificates '. 186 

excuses for absence and tardiness 189 

industrial training 189 

inspectors of 190 

misdemeanor of parents, etc 185 

number days' attendance required 184 

penalty for unlawful, employment 187 

permits and badges 191 

record of attendance by teachers 187 

school record certificates 185 

state funds withheld 190 

suspension of 192-197 

the act of 1874 183 

truants, arrest of • • 188 

truants, commitment of 189 

truant schools 189 

unlawful employment of children 186 

where children may attend 184 

who shall attend upon instruction 184 

Continuation schools 169 

Contracts (see under Teachers' qualifications, etc.). 

Contract system 213 

Corporal punishment 270 

County judge 45 

County treasurer: 

make annual report to commissioner of education 43 

payment of school moneys 44 

payment of unpaid taxes 44 

require bonds of supervisor 44 

should sue bond 44 

Courses of study: 

agriculture 169-174 

authority to adopt ^°3 

authority of parents 164 

authority of teachers 164 



334 INDEX 

Courses of study —Continued. page 

in normal schools 242 

industrial training 169-174 

physiology and hygiene ^, 164 

religious exercises i65 

subj ects that may be included 163 

subjects that must be included 163 

Deaf and dumb institutions 225 

Deputy commissioner of education 1 1 

Director of agricultural and industrial education 12 

Director of examinations and inspections 13 

Director of state library -. 12 

Director of state museum 12 

District attoriiey 44 

District superintendent: 

administer oaths 35 

appoint members of boards of education ^6 

apportion school moneys 27 

assemble teachers ^37 

call school meetings 3^ 

certificate of election 29 

condemn school buildings 34 

divide territory into school districts s^ 

establish district boundaries 34 

examine and license teachers. \ 35 

expenses of $3 

failure to elect 29 

filling vacancy '*. 30 

how^ chosen 28 

inspect training classes ; 37 

meeting of directors . . ., 28 

meetings of school officers 37 

not to be interested in certain business, etc 31 

not to engage in other business 31 

oath of office 32 

order furniture supplied 34 

order nuisance abated 34 

order repairs .* 34 

performing duties of another superintendent 33 

powers and dutid% 33 

proceedings of meeting of directors 28 

qualifications of , 30 

recommend appointment of normal pupils 37 

removal from office '. 32 

reports 35 

revocation of certificates 35 

rooms for examinations 36 



INDEX 



335 



District superintendent — Continued. page 

salary of 32 

salary may be withheld 33 

subject to regulations of commissioner 36 

supervision 33 

take testimony in appeals 35 

term of office 30 

vacancies 30- 

Educational extension division 14 

Examinations and inspections division 13 

Fire drills 272 

Flag law 180 

Free tuition law 218 

Gospel and school lands 153 

Holidays (legal) 155 

Indian schools 224 

Industrial education 169 

Janitor's work 265 

Kindergarten 96, 126, 288 

(See Powers jmd duties, Town boards, page 126; and' City school 
systems, page 288.) 

Law division 15 

Libraries: 

apportionment of money 230 

books may be transferred to free library 232 

commissioner may withhold money 231 

expenditure of money 231 

general supervision of 230 

* librarian 1 1 1, 231 

school authorities released 232 

use of library 231 

Literature fund iS3 

Medical inspection 203-206 

Meetings in union free-school districts: 

date of • 59 

notice of 59 

powers of annual and special meetings 61, 63 

special meetings 62 

Military instruction 209-211 

Newsboys — permit, badge, etc .\. 191 

Night schools, establishment of 96, 126, 288 

Normal schools: 

academic departments 243 

application of insurance money 243 

application of tuition 242 

commissioner of education, powers and duties 241 

courses of study 242 



336 INDEX 

Normal schools — Continued. page 

diplomas 242 

historical sketch i 239 

how established 242 

how governed 242 

insurance of 242 

local board, powers and duties 240 

. principal of ; . . . 241 

pupils, admission of ' 241 

pupils, dismissal of 241 

pupils, Indian ,- 242 

pupils, non-resident 242 

pupils, privileges of 241 

removal of teachers — the Hoose case 243 

teachers' substitutes 245 

teachers' retirement 244 

their object 239 

Orphan schools 224 

Physical training 208-209 

Physiology and hygiene requirements 164 

President of university 11 

(See Commissioner o£ education.) 
Pupils: 

expulsion of 270 

mentally defective 222 

physically defective 223 

punishment of 270 

right to attend school 49 

suspension of 269 

teachers, authority over 267 

transfer of 214 

transportation of 217 

Regents : < 

board of, etc 11 

election powers, etc 1 1 

number • 1 1 

term n 

vacancies 11 

(See University o£ the State of New York.) 

Religious exercises in school 166 

Religious garb 266 

Rural school supervision: 

district superintendent 28-37 

historical development '^■Z 

school directors •' 25-28 

supervisory districts 24-25 

Retirement of teachers 278-283 



INDEX 337 

Schools: PAGE 

attendance of non-residents 49 

closing of 265 

commissioner may open 21 

common 48 

for deaf and dumb and blind 225 

for Indians 224 

for orphans 224 

public 48 

school register 187 

union free 108, 1 18, 136 

who may attend 41 

School buildings, division 15 

School buildings: 

condemnation of T^-T^ 

erection of, in towns 70 

insurance of 85 

outbuildings 78 

payments by installments 73-74 

plans, approval of 77 

repair of, in towns 70 

sale of 84 

stairways, outside of 78 

tax for erection of, in union free-school districts 73 

use of 83 

(See City school system.) 

School census: 

bureau in New York 189 

bureaus in Buffalo and Rochester 200 

bureau in second and third-class cities 201 

census required 200 

expenses 202 

officers 200 

parents to report 200 

withholding information 202 

School directors: 

ballots 26 

filing certificates of nomination 26 

filling vacancy 28 

meeting of 28 

notice of election 26 

number of 25 

oath of office 28 

proceeding of meeting 28-29 

salary 28 

term of office 28 

vacancies 

22 



^T,^ INDEX 

School directors — Continued, page 

when and how chosen. 25 

women not to vote i 27 

School districts: 

action of meeting in altering boundaries of union free-school 

district 51 

adjustment of affairs of dissolved districts 52 

alteration of boundaries of union free-school district 50 

alteration of district ;^ 53 

alteration with consent of trustee 53 

alteration without consent of trustee 54 

approval of district superintendent ^.. .\ 51 

attendance of Indian pupils ' 49 

attendance of non-resident pupils 40 

camp schools 48 

classes of districts 48 

common-school districts 48 

conditional approval of dissolution of union free-school districts. 51 

consolidation of school districts 56 

■description of districts 49 

disapproval of dissolution of union free-school districts 51 

disposition of money of dissolved district 52 

dissolution of union free-school districts 50 

division of dissolved districts 51 

dvision of territory 48 

farm school 48 

formation and dissolution of joint districts 50 

joint districts .^ 48 

new conditions 47 

notify commissioner of dissolution of union free-school district. . 52 

number of districts 47 

origin of district system 47 

outstanding funds of dissolved district 52 

public school 48 

right to continue school 49 

school district 48 

school year 49 

union free-school district 4^ 

School hours 265 

School libraries division i5 

School moneys: 

agricultural quota 156 

aid to denominational schools prohibited 156 

academic quotas 156 

allowance to excluded districts i57 

application of state funds I57 

apportionment on attendance I57 



INDEX 



339 



School moneys — Continued. page 

apportionment of fines 158 

apportionment of library money 160 

certificates of apportionment filed 158 

superintendent's certificate of apportionment 158 

superintendent's certificate to supervisors 160 

common school fund 150, 151 

constitutional provisions 150 

correcting- erroneous apportionment 160 

different funds 150 

districts entitled to share in apportionment i6o 

district quota set apart 159 

district and teachers' quotas 154 

enumeration of inhabitants for supervision quota 154 

filing certificates of apportionment 160 

free school fund 153 

gospel and school funds 153 

„.industrial education quotas 156 

literature fund 153 

moneys apportioned may be reclaimed 158 

payments of quota on unqualified teachers 158 

payments of school moneys to supervisors 160 

physical education quota 156 

state funds withheld 158, 190 

state school moneys defined 154 

supplemental apportionment 158 

supervision quotas 154 

training class quotas 156 

unexpended moneys in hands of supervisors 158 

United States deposit fund 151 

when payable 158 

School papers, control of 271 

School savings banks 180, 181 

School year 49 

Sites: 

acquisition of 69 

change of 69 

designation of 69 

for towns 68 

for union free-school districts 68 

improvement of 68 

sale of 69, 70 

tax for 69 

transfer of title 70 

Smith-Hughes law, provisions of I73 

State education building ^ . 15 



340 INDEX 

PAGE 

State education department 10-17 

assistant commissioners 11 

chiefs of divisions 12-15 

commissioner of education. 11, 17-22 

deputy commissioner 11 

falsely representing, etc 16 

historical sketch 10 

State scholarships: 

Cornell scholarships 233-235 

other scholarships : 235-238 

State historian 12 

Supervisors : 

accounts of receipts and disbursements 40 

annual return' of school moneys 40 

disburse school moneys 40 

fees for paying- out school money 41 

filing statements of accounts ' 41 

fix valuation of property 41 

formation and alteration of school districts 41 

obtain funds from predecessor 41 

payment to collector or treasurer 40 

records of receipts and disbursements 40 

recover penalties and forfeitures 41 

trustees of gospel and school lands •...,. 40 

Supervisory districts: 

call and organization of meeting. 25 

how organized 25 

number of 24 

record of proceedings 25 

territory embraced 24 

Taxes in union-free schools: 

amendment of tax list 145 

apportionment on personal property 140 

apportionment on real estate i37 

apportionment of valuation of railroad, telegraph, telephone, etc. 142 

assessment of 136 

assessment of bank stock 139 

assessment of non-resident real estate 138 

assessment of property by trustees 142 

assessment of real estate lying in one body i37 

board may sue collector's bond 146 

board may sue for tax 146 

collection of unpaid 146 

exempt from taxation for school building I43 

filing tax list and warrants 146 



INDEX 341 

Taxes in union-free schools — Continued. page 

form of heading for tax list 136 

form of tax list 137 

notice of receiving taxes 144 

on land worked on shares 143 

on property in possession under contract 143 

payment of unpaid taxes by county 147 

property exempt from taxation 140 

return of collector on unpaid 146 

tax of tenant chargeable to landlord 143 

valuation equalized by supervisors 142 

valuation, how reduced 141 

valuation of property 141 

warrants for collection of 143 

warrants, renewal of ; 145 

(See Town school budget.) 

Teachers' institutes 251 

Teachers, qualifications of, powers and duties, etc.: 

age of .252 

authority over pupil 267 

certificates: 

academic ' 255 

college graduate 252 

drawing 254 

first grade 253 

general 255 

indorsement by district superintendent 256 

indorsement by commissioner of education 256 

kindergarten 254 

normal school diplomas 253 

refusal to issue 255 

revocation of 257 

rural school • 254 

state 252 

temporary license 255 

training class 254 

training school 254 

uniform 253 

vocal music 254 

closing school ^"5 

constitutional oath, must take 271 

contract, form of 260, 2.T>) 

contracts with minors 259 

contracts with married women 260 

contracts with relatives ^oo 

dismissal of 262, 263, 264 

duty in relation to fire drills 272 



342 INDEX 

Teachers, qualifications of, powers and duties, etc.— Continued. page 

employment of, in cities 268 

enforcement of payments 265 

military law applicable to 272 

motherhood, absence for 262 

must accept orders on supervisors "and collector or treasurer. . . . 261 

must keep record of attendance 264 

must verify register 264 

payment of unqualified 257 

payment when school is closed 261 

period of employment 2:60 

rules and regulations for 265 

verification of records 265 

wearing religious garb 265 

when compensation is due 261 

when illness prevents teaching 267 

who are legally qualified to teach 252 

who may contract 259 

Teachers' retirement 278-283 

Teachers' training classes: 

admission requirements 249 

compensation allowed 248 

designation of institutions for 247 

duty of district superintendent in relation to 249 

historical sketch 247 

institutions which may organize them ■ 247 

number of pupils in class. 248 

object of 247 

period of instruction „ 248 

quota 171 

regulations for classes 249 

training class certificates 249 

training class fund 249 

tuition 248 

Teachers' training schools 250 

Textbooks: 

adoption of 176 

change of 176 

fine, how collected i77 

free textbooks -• I77 

penalty for violations 176 

supplying pupils with 177 

Town clerks: 

assist in formation of district 43 

file bond of collector 43 

file treasurer's certificate 42 

final accounts 42 



INDEX 



343 



Town clerks — Continued. page 

obtain reports of trustees 42 

payment and expenses of 43 

preserve records 42^ 43 

record annual accounts 42 

record of apportionment 42 

records of districts 43 

Town boards of education; clerk; treasurer: 

annual meeting of board g^ 

board a body corporate q4 

board may borrow money 96^ gy 

chairman of board g^ 

duties of clerk q8 

duties of treasurer gg 

election of first board of education 97 

filling vacancy in board , 94 

number of members 92 

powers and duties of board of education 95, 96 

qualifications of members 93 

regular meetings of board 95 

review questions 99 

term of office _, 92 

treasurer's bond 99 

vacancies on board 94 

Town school budget; town school taxes: 

assessment of property in two or more towns 134 

board to levy and assess taxes 133 

board's warrant 134 

collector's bond 134 

district superintendent to aid boards in preparing budget 131 

endorsement of supplemental budget 131 

equalization of values 135 

examination of school budget 130 

filing budget 130 

form of budget 131 

laws applying 134 

powers of collector 134 

preparation of tax budget 129 

publication of budget 130 

review questions I35 

signature to budget 130 

supplemental budget 131 

township law makes no change in assessment and .collection of 
taxes 133 

Town school meeting: 

annual meeting 100 

ballot boxes . . ." 104 



344 INDEX 

Town school meeting — Continued. page 

canvass by board of education.. io6 

canvass of votes 105 

challenges 104 

conduct of school elections, laws controlling 103 

corrected list .filed vvrith inspectors 102 

correction of list loi, 102 

election disputes, how determined..... -. 106 

filing poll list. loi 

inspectors of election 103 

nomination of officers 102 

notice of meeting 100 

notice to successful candidates 106: 

official ballots 102 

penalty for false declaration and illegal voting 104 

place of meeting ^. 100 

poll list loi, 104 

polls 100 

preservation of ballots 105 

purpose of meeting 100 

review of poll list by board 102 

review questions 106, 107 

school election districts 100 

special town school meeting : 100 

void ballots 105 

who may vote 104 

written challenges 102 

Township system: 

consolidation of town school units 89 

disposition of state funds 91 

disposition of surplus funds in district treasury 91 

general statement 88 

review questions 92 

school district officers abolished 91 

school property transferred to town 82 

schools free to children of the town 92 

town school units • 89 

Union free-school districts: 

(See Board of education, School districts, Schoor buildings and 
sites. Taxes.) 

University of the State of New York: 

chancellor and vice-chancellor 2 

charters educational institutions 2 

chief functions • ^ 

constitutional provisions 2 

credentials of 3-9 



INDEX 345 

University of the State of New York — Continued. page 

crimes under universitj' law... 3 

degree conferring institutions 3 

historical sketch i 

Vaccination 207 

Visual instruction division 15 

Voters : 

challenge of 65 

decision of education department in relation to 66 

penalty for illegal voting 65 

qualifications 64 

residence of 65 

women, right to vote 64 

(Total number of pages, 354.) 



